Fearless
by K00kieDokie
Summary: Nikki is an Advertising Executive at the top of her game.But, all she really wants is a loving supportive husband and children to love. Will she find love or will her past insecurities get the best of her. (AU: lots of wrestlers and divas in this)
1. Miss Moving on

*** this Has been spinning in my head for a while,I haven't forgotten about When sparks Fly but I just had to write this down..I hope you enjoy**

_June 13th 2009_

_***Flashback ***_

"Nicole what is all of this?"

_John walked into their bedroom to the sight of Nikki in the middle of what looked like the entire contents of her closest packing it into boxes and suitcases. When she didn't respond he stormed over and stood in front of her._

"_Nicole I asked you a question"_

_She stood up from the box she was packing and looked John in the eye before speaking. _

_*sigh * " I'm finished John"_

_I'm breakin' down_

_Gonna start from scratch_

_Shake it off like an etch-a-sketch_

_My lips are saying goodbye_

_My eyes are finally dry_

_John's face contorted in confusion wondering what it was that Nicole meant. _

"_What do you mean finished?" _

_The sound of a truck horn interrupted the couple's conversation. Instead of answering she headed outside to the awaiting moving truck with a frustrated John hot on her heels. She showed the moving men where to go before turning and acknowledging John once again. _

"_I Can't do this anymore John, I WANT MARRIAGE AND KIDS and I'm not getting that with you….I think this is for the best" _

"_Nicole ,please we can make this work, what about everything I've done for you….I love you that should be enough "_

"_Is that all I am to you. . . some little trophy you can parade around for your little sorry ass meat headed gym monkey friends Huh? you think you can buy my ignorance ,that some fancy cars or vacations can make me give up my dream of marriage a family. . . . Well I'm Done being your toy. _

_I'm not the way that I used to be_

_I took the record off repeat_

_It killed me but I survived_

_And now I'm coming alive_

_John Paced the room in anger WHY was she doing this they'd been together for five years. Five wonderful years she'd told him that she didn't need any of that to be happy and now here she was giving him an John started to laugh and it was Nikki's turn to look confused_

"_I get it I really get it...this is just another one of your little scheme's to get me to marry you. Well guess what ….the last one didn't work, this one won't work and the next one won't work either so just get put all your stuff back and I'll take you shopping."_

_Nikki's jaw dropped, she couldn't believe the words that she was hearing. This was not the John that she'd known since high school this man was a stranger. She grabbed her purse and quickly left the room needing some distance before she said or did something that she would had made it halfway down the stairs when she felt a tug on her arm before she was suddenly spun around and slammed against the wall. She shoved him away and before she knew it she punched him and continued down the stairs and headed out to her car. _

_I broke the glass surrounding me (surrounding me)_

_I ain't the way you remember me (remember me)_

_I was such a good girl_

_So fragile but no more_

_She had just opened her door when she heard his voice again._

"_Why can't you just be happy? , why do you need a piece of paper ?THAT'S ALL IT IS A STUPID PIECE OF PAPER!_

_Nikki turned towards his voice , taking note that he was smart enough to keep a good 'd removed his shirt and was using it to stop his nose from bleeding. She shook her head and chuckled at the sight. He wasn't even aware that with every foolish comment he was helping her get over him. She set her purse on the passenger seat before she spoke._

"_Jonathan ,you and I both know you don't want ME happy , I had to practically BEG you to even let me move in just want someone to control , I'm not what you want and you're not what I need …..I've said it a million times I want more John …..and you won't give me that so….I guess this is Goodbye"_

_I jumped the fence to the other side (the other side)_

_My whole world was electrified (electrified)_

_Now I'm no longer afraid_

_It's Independence Day (Independence Day)_

_With that Nikki Got in the car and Started the engine. Her relationship with John was destined to fail they wanted two different things .No matter how much she loved him she knew she had to put herself first. Putting the car in reverse she pulled out of the driveway and drove away from that chapter in her life. _

_I'll never be that girl again_

_No oh oh_

_I'll never be that girl again_

_No oh oh_

_My innocence is wearin' thin_

_But my heart is growing strong_

_So call me, call me, call me_

…_..Miss movin' on_

**_***Song is 'Miss Moving On' by Fifth Harmony I own Nothing***_**

**_Hope you enjoy-Read and Review_**


	2. Present Day

**Sorry I took so long to update I've been trying to get this PERFECT and I'm still thinking about redoing it...Enjoy**

**** 2014: Greenwich Connecticut ***

_"__Gucci I'm home!"_

Nikki greeted her dachshund as she walked into her two story had been especially rough on her this week especially since her boss had dumped what felt like an extra truckload of paperwork on her desk at eight o'clock that morning .That was over twelve hours ago and luckily it was Friday which meant she didn't have to even THINK about work until Monday was bone tired and in despirate need of was a Junior executive at the HHH Advertising Agency. They handled the marketing of some of the biggest companies in the world . This morning she had been put in charge of a multi-million dollar account for a Jewelry Company,the final meeting for which would be the following soon heard Gucci's excited yelps as she scurried over to greet her owner.

Setting her briefcase and the mail she had gotten out of the mailbox down on the hall table she bent down and scooped her up kicking the door shut and locking it she walked towards the kitchen to grab a glass of wine for herself and to feed the dog.

_"__bon appetit "_

She said as she set the food dish back down into the custom feeding station she had built to keep it out of the middle of the floor. Her pocket suddenly began to vibrate , pulling out her phone she saw it was her little sister Brie calling , although they were twins Nikki loved to remind brie that she was still older even if it was only by four minutes, she quickly answered the phone.

_"__Nikki , are you ok?" _

_"__why wouldn't I be?"_ Nikki asked curiously wondering what was wrong for her sister to call her like this.

_"Have you checked your mail?"_

_"__No, why ?"_

_"__Check it"_

Nikki grabbed her glass sipping and talking Brie as she went back to the entry table and rifled through the mail. It only took a few moments until she noticed a beautifully decorated envelope knowing instantly that it was a wedding invitation. It wasn't surprising considering most of their friends were getting married and starting families. Even Brie had married her high school sweetheart a year ago and the two were currently trying for a baby.

"Ok, so it's a wedding invite ,I've got like ten of these in the last two years"

"Nikki I'm not trying to hurt you or cause you ANY pain or heartache….but I need you to open it."

Nikki did as instructed breaking the seal and pulling out the card. It was in that moment that all of the air left her body. She could vaguely hear brie asking if she was alright. She re-read the first line of the invitation hoping the words would change but each time the words stayed the same:

**'****_Jonathan Felix Anthony Cena Jr. and Summer Rae Cordially invite you to join them in helping celebrate their union'_**

_"__that…..little….BITCH!"_ Nikki shouted she was pissed, angry and most of all hurt. She'd tried for four years to get John to even THINK about marriage and here he was marrying another woman. Not that she was jealous she'd long since gotten over John but, this was a jab to her downing her wine she went into the kitchen and poured another.

_"__Nikki. . .honey are you ok?"_

_"__Yeah...I'm fine. What would possess him to send me this , we haven't even talked in five years and all of the sudden he sends me THIS…...this…... bullshit…...yeah that's exactly what this is complete and utter bullshit"_

Brie then heard what sounded like paper ripping already guessing that her sister had tore the invitation up and throwing it in the trash.

_"__His fiance is in one of the pilates classes I teach ,she's asked about you today which was weird then she went on about so crap I didn't really pay attention her voice get's annoying after a while but, my ears perked up when she asked if you got your sounded like she just thinks you two are friends"_

_"__So this is legit John being a vindictive asshole" _

_"__Never mind him, are you still coming to the Barbecue tomorrow?"_

_"__wouldn't miss it for the world. are you sure you don't want me to make anything" _

_"__Nikki…..the only thing I've ever seen you make is a reservation"_

_"__Brianna I'm being serious right now"_

_"__So am I , Do you remember those hamburgers you made when we were in college"_

_"__That was chicken"_

_"__My point exactly,just come over a bit early to help get everything together….and bring Gucci so she can play with Josie."_

The twins talked for a little while longer before Brie had to go. Once she hung up she looked through the rest of the mail disposing of the junk mail and setting the bills in her office with the others so that she could go through them before the barbecue tomorrow and write out her checks and mail them out. Heading upstairs to her room she placed a lavender scented tablet into her aroma therapy shower head, turned on the shower and grabbed a night gown out of her closet before stripping down and entering the warm water was heaven against her naturally tan skin and the lavender scent was just what she needed to relax and completely forget about everything that happened that day.

Stepping out of the shower she quickly completed her nightly ritual of applying her Olay moisturizer and and slipped into her silk nighty and climbed into bed. It wasn't long before she was pulled into a deep sleep.

Nikki was awoken by Gucci who had somehow jumped into the bed and was licking her face.

_"__Ok Gucci , mommy's awake"_

Nikki's groggy voice caused the dog to stop and wait patiently for her owner to get lay in bed for a few moments getting herself together before she got up and and began to prepare herself for Brie and Bryan's party later. She decided on wearing a beige maxi dress with an intricate tribal design on it throwing on her wooden bangles and simple silver on her brown oversized beach hat she picked up her purse and grabbed Gucci's crystal leash. Bending down she secured the leash to Gucci's collar and slipped on her brown suede louboutins before the two ladies headed downstairs. They exited the house and headed towards Nikki's Black 2014 range rover. Picking up the dog she set her in the car before getting in and heading over to help Brie.

Nikki pulled into the driveway and killed the engine she grabbed the leash and they headed towards the front door and knocked. After a moment Brian answered the door with an over excited Josie at his feet and ushered them in. She bent and removed Gucci's leash and soon the two puppies ran off to play.

_"__So ,how you been Nikki?"_ Brian asked he was truly concerned about the woman who had become a sister to him especially after what Brie told him.

_"__Wonderful, I'm working on a new account for Del Rio's Jewelry and if this goes well I think this could put me in line for the Junior V.P position I've been gunning for"_ Nikki was super excited she had gotten the news that was looking for a New J.V.P and was over the moon when he'd personally told her that she was one of the associates being considered for it.

_"__Nikki that's great" _Brian turned and engulfed her in a hug twirling her around he knew how hard she worked on a daily basis.

_"__What's with all the celebrating?"_ Came Brie's humor laced voice.

_"__NIKKI GOT A PROMOTION!"_

_"__really!"_ Brie ran over and soon Nikki was trapped between the happy couple. she fought her way out and straightened her dress.

_"__Not yet...but,I am being considered"_

_"__Still amazing news ,now come on let's get started"_

Brie led Nikki towards the kitchen while Brian went outside to start the grill. Brie busied herself making the salads and much to her displeasure that left Nikki on 'meat duty'. Once she got all of the meats seasoned she started carrying the trays out the patio door to where Brian was manning the grill. Walking back inside she was met with an unexpected. Brie was still in the kitchen only now she was laughing and playing with a very pretty little girl with skin just a couple shades darker than hers and brie's she looked to be about six or seven her curly brown hair done up in pigtails with ribbons to match her red and pink short-set.

They were so busy that they hadn't even noticed Nikki had returned.

_"__who's your friend Brie?"_

Both sets of eyes landed on Nikki and it was the that she noticed that the little girl had the most gorgeous big almost lime green eyes she had ever seen.

_"__This is our new neighbor Tessa , Tessa this is My sister this is Tessa she and her father just bought in next door a few months ago. He asked me to keep an eye on her while he ran downtown to drop off some paperwork "_

_"__so he left his daughter with people he barely knows ?"_

_"__Nikki...her dad is Anthony,you remember guy who practically passed high school for you cause you were SO busy with 'you know who' that you never 's actually a world renown chef he moved to LA for a while to open up a new restaurant it's doing great now so he decided to come back home. I think Brian mentioned something about opening a restaurant here but I could be mistaken"_

_"__Oh, how's he been"_

_"__Good"_ She covered the little girls ears and whispered _" single"_ before removing her hands. Nikki rolled her eyes.

_"__that's not what I meant" _

_"__It's something to think about….he always did have a crush on you"_

_"__whatEVER Brie,so what time does this shindig start?"_

Brie looked at the clock and noticed that it was nearly eleven thirty (am).

_"__We said two but, you know our friends like to be early"_


	3. Milk Chocolate

It was now about two thirty and the party was in full swing everyone was laughing , talking and enjoying the food while the kids played. Nikki sat chatting with a couple of her and Brie's long time friends Sasha and Cameron about the stunt John pulled.

_" __I would have went H.A.M on his ass sending ME an invitation to his wedding. I tell you this, his bum ass better not send that TRICK to my salon thinkin she gettin her hair done she gon walk out of there bald"_

Nikki and Sasha started laughing Cameron had always been over the top and despite being married to the D.A along with being seven months pregnant Cameron was still ready to kick ass .

_"__Cam calm down , getting worked up is not good for the baby"_ Sasha said trying to get her pregnant friend to relax.

_" __Besides he's not even worth it"_ Nikki added it had taken a few months but she was finally over John.

_"__mmmm but ,HE is"_Cameron said pointing towards the patio door taking notice of the new company that had just arrived and was walking and chatting with Bryan. Nikki Looked over to see who they were talking about. Sure enough Cameron wasn't exaggerating, the man was FINE. He was a lot taller (who wasn't) than Brian and he had on a pair of Beige slacks and a cream shirt that perfectly complimented his milk chocolate skin and a pair of Brown alligator print Dress shoes on his feet. His hair was clean cut in a nice low 'fade' with subtle waves and his face was a neatly trimmed goatee did wonders for his chiseled jaw and straight yet slightly pudgy nose but, what caught her attention was his green eyes.

_"__Ain't you married?"_ Sasha questioned breaking Nikki from the spell.

_"__Girl Antonio don't know will not hurt him."_

_"__Well you already have a good man , Please let the rest of us have one"_ Sasha cut in She'd noticed the look that Nikki was giving him but, didn't say anything about it deciding to file that tidbit of information away for future reference.

_"__hmm. Good point a-"_ she was cut off by the excited screech of a child nearly all the adults turned to see what's wrong. The trio turned to witness the little girl whom she knew as Tessa

_"__DADDY,DADDY,DADDY!"_ Tessa yelled as she broke into a run into Mr. 'Tall, Dark and Handsome's arms. He bent down and scooped her into his arms and hugged her 's heart stopped NO WAY was this the same nerdy looking kid she knew in high school,time was definitely his best friend. She was so caught up in their moment she didn't even notice her friends were staring.

_"__Oooohhhhh Nicooooollllleeeeee"_ Cameron said in a sing song voice snapping Nikki out of her and cameron got a good laugh at Nikki's expense.

_"__It's not funny"_ the duo continued to laugh and were beginning to gather attention from the other party goers.

_"__Fuck the both of you "_ and with that Nikki got up and stormed off towards the kitchen and found her stash of wine and poured herself a glass and went back outside. A black tail wagging behind Brie's stuffed 'anniversary bear' caught her attention.

_" __Gucci get away from there"_ the black and brown dog backed up and scurried over to her owner and barked. Nikki bent down and scooped up the pooch before she stepped back outside to rejoin the party. Taking a seat away from everyone else she sipped on her glass of wine and watching everyone party. It was kind of a wake up call to see all of her friends most of which were happily married and their kids frolicking in the field while all she had was Gucci.

_"__I like your dog"_ Nikki looked down and noticed that Gucci had captured Tessa's attention and the little girl had began to softly pet her.

_"__Thank you"_ Nikki said with a smile .

_"__what's her name?"_

_"__Her name is Gucci"_ Nikki replied

"Hi Gucci" Tessa greeted the pup causing Nikki to laugh.

_"__How old is she?"_

_"__she's six months old"_ Nikki said proudly she'd stumbled upon the pup during one of her shopping trips. The pet store was in the outlet mall she rolled over a nail in front of the store effectively blowing a tire. She'd decided to check out the jewelry store but it was closed so the pet store would have to do. She walked in and her eyes immediately went to the Black miniature Dachshund with the brown feet and ears and knew she had to have her .She'd made up her mind to adopt the pint sized princess and after filling out the paperwork and swiping her card Gucci was officially hers

that was two and a half months ago and she'd loved her ever since.

_"__Can I hold her"_ She asked with hope filled eyes.

_"__Sure"_ Nikki went to set her drink down so she could hand her the puppy but, much to her surprise Gucci lept out of her arms and into Tessa's causing her to reached into her purse and handed Tessa Gucci's favorite squeak toy and soon the duo were playing and running around .Nikki couldn't help but to smile at the interaction between them. The bittersweet feeling of knowing that the man that she had once loved was getting married and would more than likely have children with someone else sat like a rock in her stomach. She felt a pair of eyes watching her ,she looked up and her heart rate sped up when she met a pair of dark brown eyes. She quickly looked away grabbing her glass off of the arm of the chair and draining the rest of her glass before setting it back down.

Looking back up her eyes widened when she realized he was headed in their direction. Nikki casually pulled out her phone and pretended to check her messages.

_"__Hello"_ Looking up she saw the chocolate adontis standing in front of her.

_"__Hi"_ Nikki barely squeaked out ,she didn't know what it was about him that made her so nervous this was the same Tony that sat behind her in tenth grade math class.

_"__Long time no see?"_ Why did his voice have to be the vocal equivalent to chocolate liqueur? It just wasn't fair for him to look THAT good AND sound even sexier.

_"__Ye-yeah it uh it has been so….a daughter wow."_ He looked over at Tessa and smiled.

_"__yeah she's great I don't know what I would do without her"_

_"__She's beautiful"_

_"__Thanks but, I can't take all of the credit…... she get's her looks from her mother"_ His voice took on a strange tone that Nikki couldn't quite pin point .

_"__um ...so how's the restaurant business treating you?"_ Nikki decided to change the subject hoping this wouldn't result in her putting her other foot in her mouth.

_" __it's going great ,I'm thinking of opening a cafe here in town. something that focus on organic beverages and food"_

_"__That sounds amazing Tony, I'm really happy for you"_ Nikki was proud of him and wished him all the best.

_"__So how have you been Nicole?"_

_"well ,I work at the HHH ad. Agency and I'm currently working on a Campaign for Del Rio Jewelry company they're unveiling a new line of jewelry that's supposed to be amazing and if I nail this, I'll be in line to be the newest Junior V.P"_

He smiled as he listened to her talk about herself not minding one bit,the truth was he was in love with her, and had been since he'd first laid eyes on her back in the tenth grade.

The duo talked for a couple of hours which didn't go unnoticed by Cameron or came out of their little world when Toni noticed that it was getting dark.

_"__Holy shit ,what time is it?"_Nikki pulled out her phone and her eyes widened when she saw the time

_"__It's seven thirty"_

_"__Shit, we gotta get going….Tessa!"_ He called out to the little girl who soon made her way over

Tessa walked back over towards the adults carefully carrying the puppy in her she got closer they noticed that she had managed to tucker the puppy a good look at Tessa her eyes looked a bit tired herself.

_"__shhh daddy the baby's sleeping"_ Tessa chastised her father in a whisper.

_"__oh ….sorry...who's your friend?"_ Toni asked but this time in a whisper

Nikki had to bite the inside of her cheek to keep from laughing these two were too much.

"This is Gucci she's six months old , she was tired so she took a nap" He nodded and held his arms out towards his daughter.

_"__Can I hold her?"_ She slowly turned her body away and went over towards Nikki.

_"__No daddy she needs to go with her mommy"_ She carefully set the pup in Nikki's lap before she went back and climbed into his and before long she was sleep as well.

_"__I'm gonna head home and tuck her in for the night"_

_"__ok...I'll see you some other time"_ she knew she had no right to be sad that was his daughter of course he was going to put her first but, she couldn't help the disappointment that she felt when he left.


	4. Movin on Up

Nikki had been running crazy all morning preparing for the big meeting that would make or break her career and it didn't help that her mind kept going back to Anthony and his since Brie and Daniel's party it seemed like she ran into them everywhere she knew her assistant Alexa was ready to kill her and had to remember to make sure she gave her a raise after all of this was done and over with.

_"__Ok where are the spreadsheets?"_

_"__I got spreadsheets, charts, notes ,everything we need is in your briefcase don't worry...we got this in the bag"_

Alexa assured Nikki, she knew that her boss was nervous she was too but, she and Nikki had been working their asses off for the last month ironing out every single detail of this knew this account like the back of her hand and if Del Rio knew good business they'd see it.

Nikki paced around the large office her nerves were getting the better of her. Nikki looked down at her watch seeing it was about time for she and Alexa to head down to the conference room to set up. The ladies gathered their essentials and soon were preparing for the biggest meeting of their careers.

_"__So as you all can see with these marketing strategies and budget our campaigns according to the documents in the folders we've provided, we can expect to see a minimum of two-hundred percent in recoup in sales. Does anyone have any questions?"_

From what she could see Nikki would say the meeting was going well Alberto's assistant Ricardo seemed interested but he himself wasn't really giving anything away which unnerved her. The room was deafeningly quiet Alberto and his associates conversed amongst themselves she looked towards Mr.&amp; Mrs. Helmsley who looked just as nervous as she did.

_"__ "_ The sound of Alberto's voice brought her attention back to him.

_"__Yes Rio"_

_"__I'm very Impressed you really know your stuff and I only have one question"_

Nikki 's heart stopped she could feel her throat closing in on itself

_"__Whatever it is I'll try to answer it to the best of my abilities"_ The smile that formed on his face erased all of the doubt she'd held during this whole process.  
_"__when do we put this plan into action?"_ Nikki swore her face was going to split in half with the size of the smile on her face. Nikki slipped back into her job and directed everyone to the timeline she had drawn up . After a few more minutes Alberto and his business associates took their leave and it was just Nikki , Alexa , Hunter and his wife Stephanie in the meeting space straightening it up.

_"__Nicole"_ She was putting all of her charts and excess paperwork into her portfolio when she heard Hunter call her name.

_"__Yes Sir"_ She tried not to sound too eager.

_"__You did an amazing job today….We'd like to see you in my office Monday to Discuss your future with the company, is eight am ok with you?"_

_"__I'll be here at seven thirty"_

Nikki replied eagerly.

_"__We'll see you then"_ Hunter replied before he and his wife left Nikki and Alexa alone. Once the couple were out of earshot Alexa ran over to Nikki and the Pulled her into a tight hug which she returned with just as much enthusiasm.

_"__I told you,you had this"_ the Assistant commented once they separated.

_"__I know….I owe you HUGE for this Thank you Alexa,like seriously I couldn't have done any of this without you"_

_"__you're welcome, now let's get this stuff straightened up so we can go"_ They

quickly put away the rest of the paperwork and brought it back down to the office and put everything away and locking walked to her car with a little extra pep in her step, she opened her door and placed her purse in the passenger seat when she heard footsteps behind her.

_"__Nicole,long time no see"_ She turned and looked into the eyes of the man that

tried and failed to break her heart so many years ago.

_"__What do you want Jonathan?"_ She questioned coldly getting straight to the point refusing to play nice with this man who had been nothing short of vindictive.

_"__What, I can't stop by to say hello to an old friend?"_ He looked so innocent his smile putting his dimples on full display, unfortunately for him Nikki knew the truth behind his smile.

_"__No I'm very busy and have places to be . .want?"_ She asked again her patients were gone and she just wanted to get home to celebrate landing the biggest account of her career.

_"__I Just wanted to see if you got your invitation?"_ His seemingly innocent smile turned devilish, she could feel his gaze trying to read her emotions and saw in his eyes that he was only here to hurt her.

_"__Yes I did and Congratulations"_ She was surprised at how easily that rolled off of her tongue.

_"__So are you coming?" _

_"__NO,Why the fuck would I go to YOUR wedding?"_ Nikki looked at him in disgust wondering what she had ever seen in this asshole before her. John scoffed and waved it off. Throwing his arm around her as if he hadn't hurt her in the past and wasn't trying to do exactly that now.

_"__To see what you missed out on,face it Nicole if you had just shut up you'd be the woman about to be Cena. But, look at you...just a sad ,lonely ,bitter hag who'll probably never get married."_ She took his arm and removed it from her person with disgust .

_"__EXCUSE YOU !, John don't ever think for one moment that I still want you I was over you the minute I drove away from your little hell hole."_

_"__Nicole , please let's not kid ourselves, Look at me, you know I'm not easy to get over"_ He began to laugh and Nikki looked at him in disgust shaking her head ,wondering what she had ever seen in him.

_"__Listen here you son of a-"_

_"__Nikki, are you ok?"_ The duo turned to see Cameron's husband Antonio had walked over towards them looking every bit as intimidating standing there as he did when he was grilling criminals in court. His mere presence had wiped the ugly smirk off of John's smiled at him and shook her head.

_"__No ,I'm fine ..he was just leaving, weren't you John?"_ Without another word John turned and left the duo alone.

_"__So that was the infamous 'John' Cammie is always going on about, he really is a piece of work ...she's been sugarcoating it."_ Nikki nodded in agreement.

_"__oh ,I almost forgot,Cameron wanted me to ask how great the pitch meeting went and when you wanna go out to celebrate your promotion?"_

_"__Someone's eager..IT went AMAZING but, I don't know if I got the promotion I meet with Mr. and Monday to discuss my future with the company."_

**"****So Tuesday?"**

**"****Hopefully, well I know you gotta get home ,tell Cam I said hi and that chocolate syrup is meant for ice cream not mashed potatoes "**

**"****Will do"** with that Antonio walked towards his own car.

Nikki Got in and started her own vehicle and soon enough was on her way to Brie and Bryan's house to tell them the good news.


	5. Author's Note

I'm sorry I haven't updated in a while I'm working on the next chapter right now but, unfortunately my Nikki Bella muse is being a diva and has not given me anything But, thankfully Brie has stepped in for her sister so I've focused more on her POV in this next chapter which I promise will be up soon thank you for sticking with me.


	6. Someone's in the kitchen with Nikki

***Ok SO late last night my Nikki Muse decided to cooperate so I kicked out this Chapter so I had to push the chapter featuring Brie back one which is PERFECT because this one flows better* And a special shoutout to the Legit BOSS Sasha Banks for winning the NXT women's championship i was so freakin hype when she won. **

Nikki stepped up to Brie and Bryan's home deciding to stop in and share her good news. She waited a few moments after ringing the doorbell before ringing it again

wondering where her sister was, knowing fully well that she didn't have a class to teach that day so she should be home. she reached into her purse, got out her phone and dialed Brie's number.

_"__Hello"_ She answered on the third ring sounding a bit disheveled.

_"__Where are you?"_

_"__Bryan and I are next door at Tony's house helping him with some ideas for the restaurant."_

_"__WE'RE TASTE TESTING!"_ she heard her brother in law shout through the receiver.

_"__oh...I just got out of work and I wanted to tell you how my meeting went"_

_"__ok, hold on"_ She put her hand over the mouthpiece for a moment, shuffling could be heard followed by a door opening .

_"__Nikki look to your left"_ She did as she was told and saw Brie with her head poking out of the house next door.

_"__Come on"_ The younger Garcia waved her over and she complied. Nikki stepped into the house and looked around , taking in the scenery noticing that most of the of the pictures were of Tessa as she followed her sister into the kitchen one in particular caught her attention this one was of Tessa,Anthony and a woman whom she assumed was her mother the gorgeous green eyes and thousand watt smile that perfectly matched the young girls was a dead give away.

_"__Hi"_ Nikki greeted once she and Brie had reached the kitchen, her heart rate picked up when her eyes met Tony's. She didn't know what it was about him that destroyed her nerves. The twins took a seat on either side of Bryan as Tony stood by the stove preparing yet another potential dish for his new place of business .He pulled a third plate out of the cabinet and sat it in front of Nikki so she could join Brie and Bryan as his 'guinea pigs' before he prepared and plated the delicious smelling concoction onto the three plates.

_"__Ok here we go,this is a cooked spinach and chickpea salad I threw in some steak and topped it off with a light provolone cheese and ranch sauce."_ Nikki tasted the first bite and was in heaven.

_"__Tony this is delicious"_Brie commented once she had swallowed, Bryan and Nikki nodded in agreement.

_"__yeah, I can already picture myself eating nothing but this for like a month straight when your place opens"_ Nikki added. Bryan busied himself finishing the rest of both his and his wife's plate and was eyeballing his sister in laws plate as well.

_" __how'd the meeting go?"_ Tony questioned taking the older twin by surprise , she honestly hadn't expected him to remember.

_"__It,uh it went great, I got the account….AND I have a meeting Monday with Mr. Helmsley."_

_"__YES, YES,YES! I told you you'd get it"_ Bryan burst out causing everyone in the room to jump. Brie gave her husband a hard shove.

_"__Indoor voice please, Gosh"_ Bryan got up snatching his bride out of her chair and spun her around. Her shrieks of joy caused. Tony and Nikki to laugh at the their shenanigans.

_"__What is going on in here?"_

The sound of another voice interrupted the fun. The quartette turned towards the kitchen 's eyes widened there stood Tessa with the woman in the pictures Anthony had in the entryway . Tessa ran right into his arms and hugged him tight around the neck and planted a big kiss on his cheek.

_"__Hi?"_Anthony greeted his daughter and mystery Brunette with confusion evident in his voice.

_"__Something came up at the office, I don't know how long I'll be and I don't want her sitting around bored for god knows how long…..what smells so good?"_ She walked towards the cook top stood next to Anthony and looked into the pan.

_"__Here"_ He grabbed a fork out of the drawer and piled on some of the food holding it towards her devoured the fork full in a single bite moaning in pleasure at the taste.

Nikki's face contorted at the exchange between the two ,she felt a surge of jealousy run through her veins. Brie nudged her older sister making sure that neither Tony nor his guest saw them.

"So are you gonna introduce us Anthony or did you forget ALL of your home training?" Nikki said with a slight bite in her tone ,luckily he didn't seem to notice her hostility.

_" __sorry, these two are the insane married people I was telling you about that I went to school with and THIS is Nikki. Guys, this is Eve"_ Brie noticed Nikki's claws retract when he introduced her as just 'Eve'.A chorus of 'hellos' and 'nice to meet yous' filled the room.

_"__Where's Gucci?"_ Came Tessa's little voice from her father's arms.

_"__She's at home"_ Nikki responded

_"__oh so YOU'RE the one with the puppy,I picked her up from school Monday and that was all she talked about?"_ The older Garcia smiled and felt like a bit of a jerk for her thoughts towards Eve...she wasn't a bad person,she was actually very nice but,her closeness to Anthony turned her into a jealous bitch and she hated herself for it.

_"__Yeah, and speaking of which I have to get home and feed my little one.I'll see you guys later."_ she turned towards her twin as she continued speaking. _"Brie I'll call you"_ She then turned towards Tony _"the food was amazing, thank you"_ His smile was weak although he didn't want her to go he couldn't force her to stay.

_"__The pleasure was all mine Nicole,how about I walk you to your car?"_ Nikki could feel her heart rate increasing.

_"__ummm….uhhh….yeah...yeah..yes...that would be great"_ She nervously shifted from foot to foot desperately trying to form a sentence that didn't make her sound stupid.

He passed Tessa back to Eve…..or at least made a sad attempt to it seemed like the little girl was dead set on staying with him after a few minutes he gave up and soon the trio was outside standing next to Nikki's SUV.

So ….Nikki….the restaurant's grand opening is in three weeks….and I was wondering if you'd like to go?" The brunette stood frozen her mind working hard trying to process what exactly it was that he was trying to say.

_"__sure, I love going to fancy places and wearing fancy clothes and going on da- hanging out with people I know"_She didn't want to assume it was a date not in the mood to make a fool of herself,especially if Tessa's mother was in the picture still. Tony on the other hand found it rather cure the way she not so subtly dropped hints in order to see if he was asking her out or not. He took her hand in his free one.

_"__how about we call this a…...'Congratulations on landing that big account and on your new job' date"_Nikki couldn't believe her ears was this really happening?

_"__um….Okay"_ she couldn't hide the smile that lit up her face and honestly he was enjoying every moment of it. She practically floated to the drivers side of the car, she situated herself and pulled she had to get home and make a phone call.

_"__No that ugly bastard didn't"_

_"__Yes he did"_

The second Nikki walked in the door she called Sasha and filled her in about her run in with John.

_"__I knew his punk ass was up to something, would you stop"_

_"__Stop what?"_ Nikki was confused as to what she was going on about.

_"__Not you Nikki, I was talking to Roman...hold on"_ she heard her friend scold her fiance before she got back on the line.

_"__I don't know what woulda happened if Antonio hadn't shown up and run him off"_

_"__Thank god….but what I wanna know is why you got on the phone sounding so cheerie?"_

_"__well you know my big meeting was today...it went wonderful by the way…..and I went over to tell Bryan and Brie who were over at Tony's house and he invited me to his restaurant opening…..as in a date"_ Nikki had to pull the phone away from her ear to save herself from the scream that Sasha let out. she hesitantly brought the receiver up to her ear hoping that her friend was done having a stroke.

_"__We gotta go shoppin and find you a bomb ass dress girl,and we gotta get the crew together and have a girls night and go out for drinks or something"_

_"__nuh-uh,Cam's prego and Bryan said I am NOT allowed to let Brie get shit faced again and you know shots are like potato chips to her"_

_"__What?"_

_"__She can't have just one"_ She heard laughter from the other end .

"_True….and we would never hear the end of it if SHE can't drink with you , But we gotta go out to dinner"_

_"__I don't even know If i got it yet,I wish all of you would stop jinxing me"_

_"__C'mon Nick , you're the hardest working as executive in there , you had it before the meeting"_

She heard Roman's deep voice flowing through the phone and smiled he was a wonderful guy like herself Sasha had been in a relationship with a controlling man but unlike her Sasha had been physically abused. Thankfully they had been able to get her out before he could do any permanent herself had taken great pleasure in watching Bryan and his friend Seth kick Randy's had met Roman a little over two years ago he had been so patient and careful with her and she was happy that her friend found him.

_"Tell big cat I said thank you but, I don't want to jump the gun I will wait until I hear the news Monday before I plan ANY celebrating"_

_"__To quote Cameron and I will kill you If you ever tell her this , Girl bye you know that promotion is YOURS"_ Nikki was blessed to have such a wonderful support system.

_"__Well Nik, we should get some rest We promised Cameron we'd help her set up the baby's room and you know she's gonna wake us up to be there at seven am, then she's gonna take forever getting ready and yell at Antonio for nothing then cry then at about why he don't think she's pretty then at around two pm we should be ready to go."_ She looked at the time and noticed it was well past ten o'clock pm before she spoke.

_"__Good point ,I'll talk to you later"_

They hung up and Nikki fixed Gucci a fresh bowl of water before she went through the house making sure the lights were out and everything was locked up before she headed off to bed.


	7. Author's Note II

_**SO freakin sorry about the 'Brie Mode' Chapter I re uploaded it and fixed the bug.( I feel like an idiot for not catching it sooner*****_


	8. BRIE MODE ! re(up)loaded

Nikki was in hell they had been in the baby store for an hour and her maternal clock was going into had already stopped by the hardware store and got the paint which was a neutral pale yellow because Cameron and Antonio didn't want to know what they were having deciding it was more fun to keep it a secret. The mother to be was busy looking at the diaper bags while the rest of them looked at things that mattered. Joining Cameron and herself on their little field trip was of course Sasha along with Brie,Cameron's sister Alicia Antonio's sister Aksana and her girlfriend Bayley they had met both of them at the wedding.

_"Cam can we came to look at furniture not to accessorize"_Alicia pointed out

_"Hater in the midst"_ The mother to be shot back a she finally joined the group over by the cribs.

Nikki gazed longingly at the cribs she'd long since blocked out the maternal feelings she'd had but,being in this store was almost too much for her to handle.

Brie looked towards her sister and saw the hurt in her eyes as she stood next to the crib, knowing that besides a successful career the only thing her sister ever wanted was a loving family of her own. They younger twin's eyes widened and her jaw dropped as she saw a familiar person enter the store.

_"Holy Fuck"_She whispered under her breath.

_"BRIE"_ Sasha elbowed her in the side having been standing close enough to catch her words

_"girl, what is with you?"_ Sasha questioned quietly , luckily the rest of the girls were busy debating on which crib Cam should get to pointed towards the leggy blonde with the slight bump in her belly.

_"That's Summer Rae"_ Sasha's eyes widened as Brie's words sunk in .

_"Does Nikki know what she looks like?"_ Sasha whispered .

_"If she doesn't I'm POSITIVE she'll recognise HER"_Brie nodded her head towards to a shorter blonde standing beside Summer"

_"Who's she?"_ Brie looked towards Sasha with confusion in her features'

_"That's John's sister "_ Sasha still looked confused so Brie continued speaking to jog her memory.

_"Kelly ...You kicked her ass freshman year of high school when she bumped into you and rolled her eyes and laughed when you asked her to apologize"_

_"OH, Yeah I remember dat bitch" _

_"Shit they're wandering over here"_

_"You didn't notice she was pregnant?"_Sasha questioned once she'd gotten a good look at Summer's 'physique', Both women kept their eyes firmly on her without being too obvious about it.

_"No….hell she's barely showing now but,I usually try to avoid her since shes kind of a bitch"_

_"EXCUSE ME, is there something you two would like to share with the class. you know I don't like being left out so either tell me what the whispering is about or contribute"_ Cameron was so damn nosy but, nobody liked telling her anything because it her answer was usually illegal they didn't know how Antonio dealt with it.

_"I like the cherry one,it's not masculine or feminine but, it works either way"_ Sasha added not wanting to draw any attention to the woman they were staring at Cameron pointed her finger at the duo as she waddled towards them.

_"No,no,no talk. I wanna hear what y'all was sayin"_

_"Not now Cameron"_ Brie answered through gritted teeth as she tried to give the heavily pregnant woman a hint but, she was never too good at catching them.

_"Oh my God, Brie. What are you doing here?"_

The younger twin groaned as the blonde walked towards her followed by Kelly and a Black haired woman who looked like she hadn't seen sunlight since the stone age.

She pulled Brie into hug that she didn't even try to muster up the strength to returned.

She made eye contact with Nikki over the blonde's shoulder and judging by the look on her face she had in fact saw Kelly and figured out what was going carefully untangled herself from Summer and stepped back.

_"Ok ladies I think it's time for us to go"_ Brie said trying to get everyone to catch on, Nikki hadn't yet seen them and she wanted to keep it that way. Unfortunately John's bitch of a sister wasn't having it she'd zeroed in on Nikki and headed over towards her.

_"OMG Nikki?….I thought that was you, you look amazing"_ The artificial blonde's greeting was obviously fake and from what Brie could tell so was the smile on her sister's face.

_" OMG Kelly, I wish I could say the same"_ Nikki replied with no humor in her voice but it did get the rest of her friends to laugh , Especially Cameron who made a point to laugh EXTRA loud. Kelly merely rolled her eyes.

_"oh Nikki you're SO funny. We're here to shop for Summer...you know John's Fiance and my future sister in law? yeah, she's five months pregnant and John is SUPER EXCITED to become a dad and a husband….so what are you doing with your life"_

_"Well not that it's any of YOUR business but I'm an excutive at a very well known ad agency"_ Kelly smirked and put on her best fake pity face.

_"awww, no husband you must be so lonely"_

_"Listen bi-"_ Brie could tell Nikki was about two seconds from getting them all kicked out of the store not to mention arrested so she decided it best to stop her before she got started.

_"Actually Nikki's been seeing Anthony Davis...you remember him don't you well now he's a five star chef with SEVERAL successful restaurants and he's back in town to open another one, the grand opening of which I'm SURE you've seen on practically every news channel and not to mention the Celebrities that have been all over twitter and facebook talking about the 'can't miss' event of the year-"_

_"Just in case you were wondering"_ Sasha finished the statement and swung her arm over Kelly's shoulder and smiled when she saw a look of jealousy pass over her features.

_"you know what ,I think we've found everything we need… and we should just go"_ Bayley who hadn't really said much up until then spoke up, Prompting Aksana to pull her lover knew how much Bayley hated confrontation and looked over towards Cameron with pleading eyes and she nodded in agreement and grabbed her items and headed towards the register Aksana ,Bayley and Nikki followed suit. Brie and Alicia were too busy making sure Sasha didn't assault anyone, Neither woman was in the mood to have their mugshot updated also Brie highly doubted that Antonio could sweep this under the rug like the last time.. . .Don't ask

_"alright Banks, bring your narrow ass on"_ Alicia kept a close eye on Kelly until they were at the registers knowing full well what the little sneak was capable of.

_"Ha ha you are hilarious"_

She pulled Sasha along stopping only to hand Nikki what she'd planned on purchasing and money to pay for them before escorting her out of the store and to the car.


	9. Big shot

Nikki tossed and turned unable to sleep it was midnight and she had a career defining meeting in seven hours that she needed to be prepared for and needed all the sleep she could mind kept wandering back to her conversation with Anthony they hadn't exactly talked about anything but, she just couldn't stop thinking about what he said. '_All I'm missing is a Queen'_

_*****Flashback*****_

_**Nikki sat in her reading chaise where she sat curled up reading a cheesy romance novel that Brie had recommended when she heard her phone ring. Luckily it was right on the side table next to her and quickly answered it without looking, expecting it to be a call from Brie so she could tell her how stupid the book was. **_

"_**Hey boo" **_

"_**Hey gorgeous" Nikki's eyes widened when she heard the deep voice as she took the phone from her ear and looked at the caller I.D and seeing Anthony's name along with a photo of him on the snapped out of her daze when she heard him calling her name and hurried to put the receiver back up to her ear.**_

"_**Oh my god I'm so sorry….I thought you were Brie"she began to babble appalled at her own openness wishing desperately that she could rewind time so she would check the damn caller I.D.**_

"_**Don't apologize It's ok ,feels kinda nice to be called 'boo' "**_

_**Soooooo,why'd you call?"**_

"_**just to chat, Tessa's sleep and I'm bored out of my freaking mind"**_

"_**So you called me to entertain you" The humor was evident in Nikki's voice**_

"_**Yup" That brought forth genuine laughter from Nicole and his heart swelled when he heard it.**_

"_**Are you excited?" she asked once she got her laughter under control**_

"_**Kinda but,mostly nervous" **_

"_**Nervous…..why? You've literally done this dozens of times before"**_

"_**Not Because of the opening, because you'll be there" Nikki sat up when she heard that not believing that he'd honestly said that.**_

"_** . .what abo-….huh?" she couldn't form a complete sentence and she was getting really sick of becoming tongue tied around this man and hoped that she would get over it one chuckled thoroughly enjoying her current state of tongue tied even more so because he was the reason soon fell into an uncomfortable silence Anthony tried desperately to think of something to keep the ball rolling not wanting her to hang up.**_

"_**So….Tessa's been asking about getting a dog ever since she met Gucci" He knew that was a cheap trick to get her to talk but,he was desperate.**_

"_**You should get her one….Brie and I had a dogs growing up Bear and Duncan were their names, whenever I was feeling down I would just hug one of them and It made me feel 1000 times better."**_

"_**I don't know,there's a lot more important things that Tessa needs other than a dog Like a parent that doesn't neglect her.I feel terrible because she's been clinging to Brie lately I feel like I'm taking advantage of her and Bryan"**_

"_**what about what's her name…..Evelyn?" **_

"_**I assume you're talking about Eve and she's busy with work too I just need to work for a little while until I get the Chefs at the new place trained then we're going on vacation" **_

"_**Ohhhh, where?"**_

"_**Disneyland , she's always wanted to go and they have this really great Princess package it's $500.00 but,I know she'd love it"**_

"_**you seem like the type to spoil your daughter"**_

"_**Yeah she's my princess"**_

"_**well it's fitting because she looks at you like a King" **_

'_**all I'm missing is a queen' she thought she heard him reply but it was too low for her to comprehend.**_

"_**huh?"**_

"_**oh...um I gotta go Tessa's calling I think she had a nightmare, sweet dreams"**_

"_**goodnight"**_

_*****End Flashback*****_

She needed to know what he meant by that last statement before he got off the her worry transferred into fatigue and soon the hopefully future Junior V.P was fast asleep.

Nikki frantically pushed the button for the sixteenth floor hoping that it would miraculously make the elevator go night ….or this morning rather when she finally DID manage to get to sleep she slept too well and missed her alarm clock and now here it was 7:28 and the elevator chose this day of all days to act as if it were being lifted by a fuckin hampster on a wheel. After what seemed like an eternity the elevator finally reached the executive floor she took off in the direction of 's office as fast as her five inch high six hundred dollar Roberto cavalli's would carry scurried past the receptionist and into his office JUST as 7:30 hit.

_"__Good morning right on time as usual"_ Hunter greeted her with a smile as did Stephanie who sat in a chair to his left smiled as well.

_"__Good morning Mr.&amp; Mrs. Helmsley."_ Nikki replied trying not to let her voice sound as out of breath as she was.

_"__Good morning Nicole, Please have a seat"_ Stephanie offered Nikki nodded a thank you and took a seat in the chair across from them.

_"__Nicole, we and the rest of the shareholders are VERY impressed with how you handling the Del Rio account,It's only been two days since we've launched your campaign and he's already turning a large profit. thanks to you we have some of the biggest designers beating down our doors and not just to work with our company….they want YOU Nicole we got a call from Heyman enterprises this morning , the biggest MMA promoter in the world , a man worth 6 billion dollars wants YOU and he won't accept anyone Less "_ Hunter stopped and looked at the young executive , letting his words sink into his head.

_"__And That's why we were going to ask you to be our new Junior V.P"_

_"__we-were?"_ her eyes widened seeing her future slipping through the cracks.

_"__Yes were ….but, we discussed it and we thought It best to make you a Partner instead, you're worth way too much to us to make you settle for that."_ Before she could stop it Nikki let out a squeal of joy and quickly covered her mouth her cheeks burning red with Hunter and Stephanie laughed at her show of excitement.

_"__Thank you both so much"_ Nikki managed to get out as she wiped the tears of joy from her face.

_"__Thank you for being such an asset to this company,"_ Stephanie stood from her chair and rounded the large desk and pulling her into a hug which she graciously returned. The ladies pulled away when Hunter came over and handed Nikki a set of keys .

_"__what are these for?"_ The couple smirked before leading her out of the office and onto the elevator , once there Stephanie pushed the button for the fifteenth the elevator stopped and the doors opened they stepped out onto a Beautifully decorated Lobby the calming blues and oaks were heaven on the eyes what caught her eye was a large semi circle desk with two assistants sitting at it one was a petite woman with near waist length black hair , her bright red wonder woman glasses brought a smile to Nikki's face and the other had the tell tale dyed blue ends that she'd grown to love over the last four years. The small blonde looked up and offered big smile and waved.

_"__Nikki you obviously know Alexa but you're both going to need some help so we're giving you another assistant...this is April Brooks"_ April stood and held her hand out and Nikki gladly took it.

_"__Nice to meet you Nikki, you can call me AJ"_

_"__It's wonderful to meet you as well AJ"_

Well now that the introductions are finished let's get back to this key" Stephanie led her towards a set of double doors. She carefully inserted the key ,freed the lock and pushed on the doors trying to get them to open but , it they wouldn't budge.

_"__they slide"_ She heard Hunter's voice from behind her and slid the doors out of the way and stepped into what was the most amazing office she'd ever seen the floors were covered in a rich slate the wall unit behind the large cherry wood desk held all of her books and files that once sat in her sixth floor corner office and a beautiful white cloud like area rug sat beneath it and she couldn't wait to kick her heels off and walk on it.

_"__This is amazing guys...I don't know what to say"_

_"__Only the best for a partner...besides everything in here will pay for itself in a month"_

Hunter tossed over his shoulder having busied himself with the remote controlled window treatments she also had an amazing view of the city from there.

_"__Come on honey Lets leave to her work"_

Stephanie took the remote and sat it on the desk before escorting her husband out of the room. She walked over and took a seat behind her new desk and was soon joined by both Alexa and AJ.

_"__Sweet digs Nickster"_ Aj compliments as she took in the lavished surroundings

_"__Yeah, we did good huh Lexi?"_ she turned towards her blue haired helper whom she had no problem giving 50% of the credit to. Alexa nodded before walking over and setting a manila folder in front of her.

_"__This is the heyman file, he wants to expand his brand into workout gear and he wants US to introduce it to the world this folder contains everything we'll need to get going"_

_"__Sounds good"_ Next it was Aj's turn to approach her Dropping a green folder next to the beige one alexa had presented her with

"And Nikki, we also have Maryse Oulette ,the french canadian fashion designer begging for your attention on HER new line of handbags."

_"__Set her up for next Thursday and Heyman for Friday that way we have time to plan and we're not fumbling over each other with information and we have time to show the proper attention to each client. I'm thinking we get the biggest name under Heyman's brand and have him as the spokesmodel VS hiring someone ,It'll save him more money in the long as far as Maryse goes we need to start find a way to present them so people know they're affordable AND fashionable Take a seat ladies we're in for a long day"_ Both ladies nodded and took a seat and soon they were all engrossed in work.

After nine long hours Nikki, AJ and Alexa had managed to get a rough draft of the Ad outlines for both accounts now all that was left was for them to organize them and get everything finalized which would be the hard part. They headed out of the building together talking and laughing before separating at their cars. Nikki couldn't wait to tell her Mother, Brie and Bryan the good news.


	10. Let's Celebrate

***WARNING THIS CHAPTER CONTAINS ADULT SITUATIONS ***

Nikki pulled into her driveway and got out of the car , she grabbed her celebratory bottle of wine and her briefcase and headed to the front door. Upon entering the home she knew something was up,Gucci usually met her at the door and now the pup was nowhere to be found.

_"Gucci…..Mommy's home"_ she listened for the tale tell yaps but, they never came. Kicking off her shoes she put on her slippers and sat her briefcase down before she headed for the kitchen and placed the wine in the freezer to chill. Nikki then went into the living room finding it odd that it was so dark, it wasn't nearly as dark outside and someone had closed the curtains which were black out shades. Flipping on the switch nikki illuminated the room with light from the crystal chandelier and gasped in surprise when she saw the all of her friends there in her living room.

_"CONGRATULATIONS!"_ They all screamed once she'd turned on the lights.

"What the hell is this?" She questioned trying to keep a straight face , she wanted to play a little joke. They were all expecting her to have gotten the Junior Vice president not PArtner which came with a huge office AND a much sweeter pay raise.

_"It's to celebrate the new Junior Vice president job we ALL know you got today"_ Her mother stated as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.

_"Well, Sorry to disappoint you all...but, I didn't get it"_ She countered putting on her best sad face and trying with all her might to keep the charade going. Silence filled the room until Cameron spoke up.

"Oh HHHHHEEEELLLLL NO they did not pass over My girl for the job we all know she should have gotten , we will not stand for this. Antonio we going to court on this one cause i-"

_"They made me a Partner instead."_ Nikki said cutting Cameron off before she went down there and burned the building to the ground. The room erupted in applause when she finished and she was soon sandwiched between her sister and brother in law in a tight hug that soon turned into a massive group hug.

_"Oh MY GOD NIKKI THAT'S GREAT!"_ She heard Sasha's voice from somewhere in the back.

_"Ok can EVERYONE please move I love you all but,you're wrinkling a Donna Karen"_ It took a few minutes but Nikki finally managed to escape the love fest.

_"I'm gonna go put my things away I'll be right back"_ She called to Bryan as she went back over and grabbed her briefcase and headed upstairs to drop it off in her office where she found Gucci curled up in her chair she walked over and scooped her up.

_"awe did the loud people downstairs scare you?"_ she cuddled her close and headed back downstairs to rejoin the she walked out of the room she heard the front door open follow a familiar voice and fought to control the urge to run the rest of the eyes scanned the room for him the second she reached the bottom of the stairs. But,someone else spotted her first.

_"GUCCI!"_ She heard Tessa's excited voice holler and there she spotted her running towards her and held her arms out for the dog who was now struggling just as hard to reach her. Nikki decided to end both of their misery and bent down and gently placed the dog in her arms.

_"Thank you"_ were the only two words Tessa spoke to her before she went off to play with the Gucci.

_"So I hear congratulations are in order"_ She looked up into the chocolate brown eyes that made her heart melt and smiled her cheeks turning a bright handed Nikki a glass of wine which she gladly accepted.

_"Thank you I-"_

_"what's going on over here?"_ Nikki narrowed her eyes at Sasha and Roman who'd chosen now of all times to approach saw the knowing look in Sasha's eyes

and knew this would be incredibly embarrassing.

_"Tony I'm sure you remember Sasha and this is her boyfriend Roman."_ Tony and Roman shook hands and exchanged pleasantries whilst sasha continued to give her a sly look.

_"soooo Anthony,I hear you're taking our little Nicole on a date"_ Tony smiled and nodded.

_"yeah, I'm taking her to my Restaurant opening next Saturday"_

_"wow, what's the place called?"_ Roman questioned he had been around Sasha's friends long enough to get to know them and they were all wonderful but, he'd noticed right from the start that Sasha was closer to Nikki than she was to Brie or Cameron mainly due to the fact that they'd both dealt with abusive partners in the herself was very guarded when it came to her own feelings and she was also very protective of Nikki as well and he'd made damn sure to treat Sasha like a queen which also came with the territory of making sure Nikki wasn't going to be hurt by anyone either.

_"and why weren't we invited?"_ Nikki rolled her eyes at Sasha glad that Cameron wasn't here as well ...she'd probably ask the same question.

_"The place is called 'Cristabel' I named it after a very special woman in my life whom I loved dearly and unfortunately she passed away four years ago."_ Nikki's eyes softened at the hurt expression on his face and placed her free hand in his not at all expecting the spark that she felt when their hands touched and she nearly swallowed her tongue when she felt him give her hand a reassuring squeeze. The couple stayed and talked for a few more minutes before excusing themselves and before long everyone was saying their before they toasted to Nikki's success although it took a few moments for Antonio to calm Cameron down because as she put it 'they knew they were wrong for havin Champaign knowing damn well she couldn't drink and fuck them for makin her drink this gank ass grape juice'. Soon it was just Tony and herself sitting on the couch laughing and talking.

_"So….you have five restaurants now"_

"yeah , 'DeLis' in paris that one's more upscale, 'seaside' in miami which is on the beach and more surf and turf , 'Center stage' in New York is on broadway and it's sort of a behind the scenes of a play feel 'Gyncs'{pronounced Ginks} in California is more futuristic the decor is like the inside of a computer and that one's hard to explain but, don't worry I'll take you there one day but I'm really excited about it's got a very organic feel to it and It's my hometown I feel like this was a long time coming….and between you and me I let Brie loose with the Decorator and they killed it."

"Did you expect anything less ,If anyone would know beauty it's the Garcia-Colace twins"

"and what a beauty you are"

Nikki's ears perked up when she heard the strange tone in his voice and looked over at face was mere inches from hers, but he never moved any closer she knew it was just who he was Tony had ALWAYS been a gentleman never doing anything that she or any other female didn't grant him the permission to do. Nikki didn't know if she should kiss him or not,she could hear Cameron and Sasha's voices telling her to 'treat herself'. So against her more sensible judgement she leaned closer and sealed her lips over his. Nikki felt Tony's arms wind around her waist and pull her closer as he ran his tongue along the seam of her lips silently begging for entrance to which she quickly quickly took control of the kiss as their tongues slid skillfully over each other as they released the passion that had been building for each other since they'd reunited. Nikki pulled her skirt up enough to straddle his lap smiling into the kiss when she heard him moan in the kiss she gave him a few more pecks before taking his bottom lip between her teeth and giving it a seductive tug before releasing it.

_"wow"_ was all Tony could say,he then surprised the both of them by sliding his hands lower and cupping her voluptuous ass and pulled her even closer allowing her to feel his arousal at the apex of her slid her hands up his chest and cupped his face leaning forward she leaned her forehead against his.

_"We're not do-"_ she didn't get to finish before he slammed his lips back against hers.

her hands went from his face to his back a trying to get as close to him as possible and before she knew it he broke the kiss and practically threw her off of his lap. She almost cursed before she realized that they weren't alone. Looking towards the doorway she spotted Tessa standing in the doorway rubbing her eyes with Gucci sitting by her feet.

_"Daddy I'm tired and so is Gucci"_

_"Ok...princess...just..go put your shoes on and give daddy a minute"_ She nodded and went to do as she was told.

_"are you sure you're ok to drive?"_ They'd had a few glasses of champagne, even after everyone left they nearly polished off an entire bottle and she needed to know if he would be alright driving….not to mention she wouldn't be opposed to having him staying over.

He stood up on shaky legs knowing she had a point he was in no condition to drive, there was no way he was going to risk his baby girl's life in any way.

_"TESSA HONEY COME HERE!"_ He called out and and not a moment later the child re-appeared wearing one shoe and carrying the other.

_" I was putting on my shoes daddy"_

_"I know baby but, daddy doesn't feel good so we're gonna stay here….is that ok with you"_ She nodded before turning towards Nikki.

_"Can Gucci sleep with me?"_

_"Sure sweetie...lets get you tucked in"_she then led the duo upstairs to the guest room where Anthony got her situated and changed into the t-shirt that Nikki had been nice enough to lend her. He lifted her up into the spacious bed and waited as she crawled under the covers before he picked up Gucci and placed her in the bed as well and smiled when she immediately curled up next to pulled the blankets up over them and gave Tessa her 'Mandatory' goodnight kiss before he headed out to the bathroom to get ready for bed himself.

Nikki had just slipped into her pajamas which consisted of a mid thigh length nightie when she realized that she had left a couple of her bras hanging out to dry in the hall bathroom. She walked out of the room and towards the bathroom without thinking (or knocking) she walked right into the bathroom and froze when she saw Tony standing at the toilet and by the looks of it he'd just finished peeing.

_"Sorry.. .um.I'll go"_ She turned and ran back to her room making a mental note to use her ensuite to dry her bras from now on.

_"NIKKI!"_ She heard him call a couple times as she rushed into the room and shut the door. A few moments later there was a knock on the door she walked over and leaned against the door not feeling up to seeing the disgust in his eyes at the way she'd watched him a moment ago.

_"yes"_

_"Nikki open the door...we need to talk"_

_"...i'm really tired I have to work tomorrow and I'm just beat"_

_"Bullshit, Nikki...please"_ The pleading tone in his voice did the trick, taking a deep breath Nikki opened the door and stepped to the side and let him in. He turned towards her and she cut him off before he could speak.

_"I am SO sorry , I just wanted to move my bras bef -"_ Anthony cupped the side if her face and kissed her . It wasn't a hard kiss nor did he try to slip her the tongue either, it was just an chaste kiss on the lips but it still took her breath away.

_"It's ok Nicole"_ He said once he'd pulled away his thumb teased her bottom lip. She didn't know what possessed her to do what she did stuck her tongue out and swirled it around the digit then leaned down wrapping her lips around the tip and began sucking on it. Tony groaned from deep in his throat when she did this he wrapped his free arm around her waist and pulled her close his hand going directly to her ass. Her eyes met his has she continued to suck on his thumb, she felt more wetness pool between her legs secretly hoping that Tessa slept through the night because she needed Anthony to take her and was not willing to wait any slid his finger from her mouth and replaced it with his tongue taking the opportunity to learn every inch of her mouth. Breaking the kiss he kissed down her neck , he followed the path across her shoulder Nikki decided to give him a bit more fuel, she backed up out of his grasp and grabbed the hem of her gown ,pulling it over her head leaving her wearing nothing but a smile.

Nikki then walked over towards the bed stopping at the dresser to pull out a couple condoms before she made herself comfortable under the covers .

_"Are you gonna stand there and gawk or are you gonna come make me scream big boy?"_ She held the condoms up making her intentions clear.

He quickly removed his shirt and pants he smirked when saw her eyes immediately go to his erection that lay strained against the fabric of his boxer briefs.

_"Let me see what you're working with "_ Nikki was practically begging for his cock at this point, the need had been building within her since the moment she'd seen him again at Brie and Bryan's hooked his thumbs into the waistband of his underwear and pushed them down his legs before stepping out of eyes widened as his cock came into view he was long and thick and she was ready and willing. He moved to the foot of the bed and lifted the covers disappearing beneath the fabrics. Nikki felt his lips on her thigh and spread her legs allowing him to fit between breathing sped up as he got closer to her center. She nearly screamed in pleasure when she felt his tongue lick her wet mound with long slow strokes before sucking her clit into his hands grabbed her thighs holding them open while he feasted on her delicious womanhood.

_"Pl….please….Tony more"_ She moaned in pleasure she wanted him to continue but at the same time the need to feel his cock pounding into her pussy was overwhelming.

she felt her clit slide from between his lips as he slid further up her body and sat back on his heels he grabbed his cock and gave it a couple of strokes then gathered the bead of pre-cum that had begun leaking from his aching cock with his thumb and held it up to her lips. She knew exactly what he wanted and parted her lips eagerly cleaning the substance from his digit.

Nikki watched in anticipation as he tore open the wrapper and put on the condom. He braced one of his hands on the pillow near her head and used the other to guide his member into her dripping hole. He groaned both from the feel of the snug heat of her pussy and the juicy sound of his cock as it slid through her wetness. Nikki wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him down for a passionate kiss as he continued to stretch her inner felt his pelvis touch hers and her eyes rolled back into her head and wrapped her legs around his waist. Tony broke the kiss and

ran his tongue down her chest and took one of her nipples into his mouth as he slowly pulled out and thrusted back in. Nikki rolled her hips up to meet his torturously slow yet,well placed thrusts.

He took one last pull of the nipple before releasing it to give the other one the same attention. Nikki was moaning frantically,trying anything she could to get him to move knew this pace was killing her not to mention he wasn't faring too well either but, he'd been dreaming about the day when he'd be able to pursue more than just friendship with Nicole. Now here they were joined in the most intimate of ways, her laying underneath him practically begging him to give her the ultimate pleasure and he wanted to make it last as long as possible.

_"Tony please.I.I ne..I...I"_ He looked up into her now black eyes and released his hold on her nipple before licking a trail up to her neck to whisper in her ear.

_"you feel so fuckin good baby...I don't want it to end"_ She felt his thrusts speed up, Nikki wanted to respond but her words died on her lips as she fought to keep from wrapped his arms around her and pulled her body flush against his and once again sped up his thrusts rolling his hips every so often to brush against her g-spot. Nikki could feel her orgasm approaching and released her hold on him and held her legs behind her knees pulling her legs back allowing him to thrust deeper inside of felt his cock twitch and knew he was just as close as she nearly sobbed with pleasure when she pulled her legs back and decided to go the extra mile by taking her legs and placing them on his shoulders.

_"How's that?"_ He wanted to make sure that she wasn't hurting in any way.

_"Faster Tony"_that was all the incentive he needed before he let his control snap and began pounding into her the sound of her cursing and moans spurring him her last clear thought Nikki grabbed the edge of the pillow and pulled it over her mouth screaming into it as her orgasm hit. Tony kept thrusting above her trying to prolong it but failed , hey walls clamped down on him hard it was impossible to move. His seed shot into the condom with blinding force. They stayed that way for a moment before ony got his bearings, carefully untangling and pulling himself from her limp body.

Nikki watched as he rolled over and disposed of the used climbed back into the bed and she rolled over towards him hoping he'd want to lifted his arm when he felt her at his side and smiled when she curled up at his side wrapping her arm around his waist and placing her head on his eyelids began to droop as the adrenalin from the night's activities wore off and soon they were asleep in each other's arms.

**Reviews are welcome and encouraged.***Please go easy on me,this was my first M/F sex scene*****


	11. I'll follow you

Alexa kept looking back into the office at Nikki she seemed ….different today, She'd known the ad executive long enough to know there was something behind the smile on her face that said more than just 'I got a promotion'.

_"__What's with you? she heard AJ's voice question from beside her" _

_"__It's Nikki, she seems different"_

_" __she just got a HUGE promotion of course she's happy"_

_"__It's something else….I can feel it"_

_"__AJ, Lexi what do you two want for lunch, I'm buying"_ They heard Nikki's voice from the looked at the clock seeing that it was a little before noon which meant that the office would be shutting down for lunch in about twenty minutes and wouldn't reopen until opened her mouth to speak but was cut off by the elevator's 'ding' letting them know that they were going to have company. The doors slid open and Nikki's face lit up when she saw Anthony step off of the elevator with two bags filled with styrofoam containers in his nudged Alexa's shoulder and nodded towards Nikki.

_"__I think I know why she's so happy now"_ she whispered to the blonde who was now struggling to hold in her laughter.

_"__What brings you by ?"_

_"__I wanted to be nice and feed you. and I couldn't very well bring you something and not feed these two lovely ladies as well."_ Nikki heard a collective _'awwww' _coming from Aj and Alexa and rolled her eyes while Tony chuckled.

_"__Aren't you gonna introduce us Nikki?"_ Aj teased finding the two of them incredibly adorable together.

_"__Yes..April ,Alexa this is my...Tony ,Sweetheart these are my Assistants April or AJ as she prefers to be called and Alexa doesn't mind if you call her Alexa or Lexi, I say both depending on what comes to mind."_

Tony stepped forward greeting both women with a kiss on the hand.

_"__So what'd you bring us?"_ Alexa questioned already starting to dig into the bags.

_"__seafood alfredo for dinner and chocolate lava cake for dessert"_

_"__ohhhh I love seafood"_ Nikki joined Lexi in unpacking the bags , she quickly grabbed one of the forks and dug in to what she knew would be a delicious meal.

_"__This is Delicious"_ Aj complimented as she swallowed a forkful of the pasta dish.

_"__I'm glad you like it..shit I forgot the drinks Nik-"_ He looked around and noticed Nikki was no longer next to him.

_"__I'll be right back"_ He left them to their meals and headed back down to his car and grabbed the three bottles of juice he'd packed , they couldn't have wine which would have went perfect with the meal but, sparkling grape juice was just as good.

When he made his way back he made sure to place two bottles on the circular desk for AJ and Alexa ,who told him he could go into Nikki's personal office . Making his way inside he made sure to close the doors behind himself.

_"__this tastes really good Tony"_ Nikki had set aside her dinner in favor of the chocolate lava cake, she looked up into his emerald eyes that were full of mischief.

_"__Not as good as you"_

_"__You are so fuckin corney Anthony"_ he winked and blew her a kiss putting a smile on her face.

_"__don't act like you didn't love it"_

_"__I'm not ,in fact"_ she paused for a moment to set her cake down and walked over to the doors and flipped the lock. she headed back over towards him and hiked her skirt up before she planted herself on top of the desk in front of him spreading her legs and giving him a lovely view of her sex.

_"__No panties today baby? "_ Tony questioned with humor in his voice.

_"__I don't wear panties"_ she responded matter of factly leaning back on her hands. She didn't much like the feel of the constricting fabric and made sure to wear long skirts or pants. Tony nearly came in his pants when she spread her legs in front of him. He lifted his hands and began absentmindedly playing with her soft mound as he looked into her warm brown eyes.

_"__that's useful information…..So I'm YOUR Tony"_ Nikki smirked and nodded.

"yup...you're MINE ,you got a problem with that?"Tony Stopped and dropped his hands as his posture turned from pleasure to business which worried Nikki Sat up and pulled down her skirt suddenly feeling very silly in her current state and waited for what he was going to say next.

_"__What does that mean?"_

_"__ummm…Um...and...I...we...I thought, we could be...um"_

_"__Just say it"_

_"__Listen Tony, You're a great guy and I really like you but the last time I put myself out there I got hurt bad and I don't think my heart can take it second time."_

_"__I understand you're guarded and I get it. I'm the father of a beautiful eight year old young woman who is watching me closely especially the way I treat women and the last thing I want is for her to think that it's ok to purposely hurt someone you care about.I'm not interested in games, and If all you want is sex I can't do that because you're worth more than a quick fuck to me . All I ask for is a chance to show you how a REAL man treats a woman."_ He stood from his chair and slid his arms up her thighs slowly they moved over her hips and grazed the sides of her breast finally cupping her face in his brought their faces together so that their lips were barely could feel her heart rate pick up and closed her eyes waiting for him to seal his lips over hers but, it never happened instead he turned her face and gave her a kiss on each cheek before he released her and left.

She sat stunned for a moment trying to get her bearings before she got up and ran after him.

_"__Alexa hold my calls"_ She called over her shoulder as she hurried to make it to the elevator before the doors closed ,making it there just in time.

_"__Tony"_

_"__what Nicole"_She cocked a perfectly sculpted eyebrow at the cold tone in his voice.

_"__I'm sorry I didn't mean to hurt you"_

_"__funny how things work out ain't it"_ Nikki slammed her hand down on the emergency stop button.

_"__NOW WAIT A DAMN MINUTE!"_The day she left John she promised herself that she'd never let anyone talk down to her again and she was not going to let Tony do it no matter how green his eyes were or how good his dick gave his shoulder a hard shove and pushed him into the corner.

_"__I get that I said some shit that you didn't like but that gives you ZERO permission to talk to me like common fuckin trash. do you understand me?" _she poked her finger into his chest and he had the decency to look ashamed of himself.

_"__I apologize, I had no right to speak to you like that but , I just thought that we were on the same page , and we're not. I want something serious and you just want to have fun,I have a daughter to think about I can't just go around having sex with random people"_

_"__Did you just call me a slut?"_ Nikki folded her arms over her chest.

_"__That's not what I meant and you know it, I want a woman to share my life with I know now isn't long enough to invest my future solely on you but,what's wrong with trying"_

_"__why do we have to call it something?"_

_"__You may not realize it but, you're really easy to fall for Nicole and I know you don't want to be hurt and neither do I."_ He stopped himself before he told her that he already loved her and adding an intimate relationship with her would just make it easier for him to fall IN love with her.

_"__Ok….so...IF...we did try...this"_ she pointed between them _"How would this work? I don't want to rush into anything Tony"_he cautiously took her hands in his and took a deep breath.

_"__I'm just asking you to try ,I'll follow your lead, we can go at your pace, please"_

_"__...yes"_Anthony's face lit up and he lifted Nikki off of the ground in a tight hug and swung her around.

_"__Nicole I promise you won't regret this"_ He sat her down on her feet reaching over he pressed the release button on the elevator .When the car reached the lobby Tony gave Nikki a kiss on the cheek before he exited with a promise to call her she arrived back in her office she was surprised to see Paul waiting by her desk.

_"__ how nice of you to join me , how can I help you?"_

_"__I was Just stopping by to see how everything was going "_

_"__It's amazing ,I don't know how to thank you for this opportunity, I'm eternally grateful." _

_"__ you're the best we have It'll benefit the company JUST as much if not more as it will you"_

_"__That means a lot coming from you"_

_"__Oh and one other thing….I sawAnthony Davis walk into the building and our receptionist Darren said he asked what floor you were on...How do you know him?"_ Nikki was taken aback,in all the years she'd worked here and all the conversations they'd had she couldn't once remember him asking about her love life.

_"__he's a close friend"_ A smile crossed her face when he mentioned Anthony leading Paul to believe that he and Nikki were more than just 'close friends' as she claimed.

_"__Soooo...he's got a restaurant opening soon doesn't he?"_

_"__ye..ah"_Nikki was getting suspicious now he was by no definition of the word an asshole ,but she had never seen him THIS friendly towards anyone outside of Stephanie.

_" __I was wondering…and there's no pressure but, could you try to get us on the guest list,It's been sold out for MONTHS,It's our anniversary and Steph really want's to go"_

_"__I'll talk to him later and see what I can do"_

_"__Thank you so much Nicole"_ And with that he left with a bit of pep in his step. Once he'd left Nikki took her seat and went back to working on the campaign for Maryse .

Nikki sat outside Tony's house contemplating her next move, she wanted to do this favor for Paul but, she didn't want Anthony to think she was using she'd sat there enough she quickly got out and went up to the door before Brie or Bryan spotted lifted her hand to knock when the door suddenly opened and she was nearly ran over by Eve who was on her way out.

_"__Hey,Nikki It's nice to see you again"_ The grey eyed bombshell greeted with a smile

_"__nice to see you too...Is Anthony home?"_

_"__Yeah he's helping Tess with her homework , Just go right in they're in the dining room"_

_"__Thank you"_ Nikki stepped inside and hoped she could find the dining room , she stopped for a moment just listening and smiled when she heard their voices and followed them. She smiled when she found Tony looking over Tessa's shoulder watching his baby lifted her hand and knocked on the wall to get their sets of green eyes looked up and both held the same amount of excitement.

_"__hi Anthony, Hey Tessa"_

_" __Nikki !"_The little girl jumped out of the chair and practically tackled her in a hug. Nikki's heart filled with pride at the excitement in Tessa's voice when she saw her.

Her eyes met Tony's from across the room and she could see the 'Do you see what I meant' look in them.

_"__What brings you by Nicole?"_

_"__I actually need a favor...if you don't mind"_ Tony nodded before he looked towards Tessa who still hadn't let go of Nikki.

_"__Tessa can you give us a minute?"_

_"__Ok, I'll go put my homework in my backpack"_ She released her hold and grabbed the papers from the table and ran upstairs.

_"__So what did you want to discuss"_Nikki began fidgeting with her hands trying to figure out how to start

_"__Well my Boss….well 'Partner' Paul and his wife are celebrating their 16th wedding anniversary Saturday and his wife is a huge fan of yours and he kind of wanted me to ask you…..if….umm…"_

_"__You want me to put them on the guest list?"_ Nikki took a deep breath and nodded .

_"__and I'm not trying to use you either ,I understand if you don't want them there"_

_"__Ok"_

_"__what?"_

_"__I said OK"_ Nikki ran around the table and jumped into Tony's arms hugging him close she locked her legs around his waist and planted an earth shattering kiss on his lips.

Anthony's hands went to the backs of her thighs caressing the now exposed skin not even realizing that he'd once again fallen under her spell. She pulled away when it the need for air took over her face was red with embarrassment.

_"__Sorry, you must think I'm a bitch for sending you so many mixed signals"_ She wriggled out of his grip and steadied herself back on her feet.

_"__It's fine.I'm following your lead remember and if you start something and feel like you're not ready just say the word and I'll stop I'm a big boy I know how to control myself."_

_"__thanks, but I still feel kinda like I'm leading you on"_

_"__Nicole ,NEVER apologize to me for being uncomfortable with something and stopping I encourage it"_

_"__But I DON'T!"_ Nikki stomped her foot on the floor, the truth was she wanted nothing more than to Drag him upstairs for an encore of last night but, John's words kept running through her mind. the constant yelling and screaming at her ,telling her that she was worthless and unlovable.

_****Flashback****_

_"__John all I asked was that you consider getting married" Nikki didn't even know why she was arguing with him he had been out drinking with his buddies from work and he was doing what he always did when he got drunk berate and insult her._

_"__men don't marry women like you Nicole , you're the girlfriend that they get to pass the time before they find a woman who isn't such a complete fuck up !" John had o_

_"__If you love me it shouldn't matter"_

_"__Love...you think I love you" He began laughing maniacally_

_"__What guy in his right mind would love a self centered whore like you. All you do is sit around here spending MY money, face it Nicole you're a trophy that's all you are and that's all you'll ever be"_

**_***End Flashback***_**

_"__Nicole"_ She blinked a couple times as the sound of Tony's voice broke through her haze.

_"__huh?"_

_"__I said what did you mean when you said 'I don't'?"_

_"__I don't feel uncomfortable,It's just after that whole sham with John I'm a bit-"_

_"__guarded?, hurt? cause if you think I've lost respect for you because we had sex you're wrong. I still care just as much about you as I did before and anyone who says otherwise is just a petty son of a bitch who needs to make others hurt to make themselves feel better"_

Something in his eyes made Nikki believe him,she took a deep shaky breath and wiped at the tears that suddenly prickled at her eyes.

_"__Don't cry Nikki"_ They heard Tessa's voice from the door.

_"__I'm fine sweetie"_ she smiled letting the little girl know that she was truly ok.

_"__Daddy can Nikki come see my room?" _

_"__Ask Nikki sweetie"_ She turned to the older woman with hope filled eyes and as much as Nikki wanted too she'd come straight there from work and needed to get home to feed Gucci.

_"__Tessa I would love to but, I gotta get home and take care of Gucci. But, if you're good we can talk to daddy about us having some girl time."_ Her face lit up with excitement as she ran over to her father and gave him her best puppy dog eyes.

_"__Please Daddy ,can we?"_

_"__Nikki are you doing anything Sunday,I was gonna spend the day at the restaurant . I usually call Eve but, since you're offering..."_

_"__Sure,I'll get Brie and a couple of the girls together and we'll make a day out of it"_

_"__Thank you"_ Nikki smiled and winked

_"__no problem , I owe you one and she's a sweetheart…"_ Nikki bent down so she was eye level with Tessa _"I'll see you Sunday sweetie"_ She stood back up and kissed Tony on the cheek before she headed home.


	12. Grand Opening (warning adult content)

It was five fifteen and Nikki was rushing around the house trying to get ready to head to the opening of Cristabel the night was already a bit miffed due to an emergency and Tony wouldn't be able to pick her up,he'd called and apologized profusely so now she would be catching a ride with Brie and Bryan.

She heard a knock at the door just as she was putting in her diamond stud earrings. She took a step back and examined herself in the mirror,smoothing down her almost knee length dress thankfully it had a front zipper so she didn't have to wait for Brie to zip it up it had modest straps that were about an inch thick with a sweetheart neckline and fit her like a second skin, she prayed to god it stayed had her hair pulled back into a slick ponytail and her shoes were a pair of black crocodile skin peep toe stilettos. She grabbed her phone and her clutch before making her way downstairs.

"Hurry up bitch!" She heard Brie's voice through the door and chuckled.

_"__I'm coming,I'm coming gheez ,keep your panties on"_she threw the door opened and there stood her sister smiling wildly.

_"__At least I have panties to keep on"_ Brie countered as she locked the door and they headed back to the car.

"Hi Nikki" She was taken aback when she opened the door and saw Tessa sitting there looking like a little princess in a blue and purple tulle dress.

_"__hi "_ she greeted Tessa and Bryan as she climbed into the back of the vehicle and soon they were on their way.

_"__I hear downtown is CRAZY crowded right now."_ Brie said trying to make conversation.

_"__Well I heard that Nikki's got a girls day planned with Tessa tomorrow"_ Bryan threw in looking up to Nikki in the rear view mirror.

_"__Really?"_ Brie asked with genuine interest , this was the first she'd heard about it.

_"__Yeah I was going to ask you and Sasha to join us"_

_"__wait...what about Cameron , you know she doesn't like being left out"_ Nikki lightly bit her nail not wanting to mess it up, she had thought about asking Cam but, she'd just turned eight months pregnant and Nikki didn't want her accidentally going into labor in the jacuzzi.

_"__I thought about that but I got us reservations at the spa, you know facials ,manicures,pedicures,sauna and a jacuzzi and she can't do any of that stuff."_

_"__Ok. but, if she asks I'm throwing you under the bus"_

_"__Holy Crap"_ Bryan cut in suddenly , he was about five blocks away and the traffic was already crazy. Nikki's phone suddenly went off, causing her to blush when both Brie and Bryan heard the ringtone which was The Truth by India Arie.

_"__well,well,well I wonder who that is"_ Nikki's blush deepened at Bryan's words and Brie slapped him on the arm.

_"__Hello" _

_"__Where are you guys?"_

_"__stuck in traffic ,It's crazy out 've really got this town in an uproar"_

_"__I the papers are hounding me for interviews and pictures and I don't want to do that without Tessa...or you"_ He spoke the last part so low Nikki just figured it was wishful thinking so she didn't pay any attention to it.

_" __we'll be there as soon as possible"_

_"__Ok"_

She rolled her eyes and hung up this night was not starting out the way she'd hoped.

It took an hour but they finally made it to the restaurant, once inside Brie and Bryan found their table while Nikki took Tessa to find her father but, they found Eve first.

_"__Auntie Eve"_ Tessa called out getting her attention, her eyes widened as she quickly made her way towards them.

_"__Thank god, he's been driving me crazy waiting for you"_ Eve grabbed her arm and led them over to where Tony was speaking to a camera crew he looked up and smiled when he saw them excusing himself he all but ran over to where they stood.

_"__Thank god you made it"_ He gathered Tessa into his arms and motioned for someone Nikki assumed he meant Eve to follow before he headed back over towards where the interview was taking place and inched closer and watched how amazing he was with Tessa during the interview but, he kept looking over towards them . She felt someone nudge her shoulder and looked over at Eve.

_"__What?"_

_"__Don't just stand here, he's waiting for you"_

_"__What are you talking about?"Nikki was a bit sceptical, after all why would he want HER up there._

_"__He's been looking at you for the past five minutes AND you're his date"_

_"__But-"_

_"__But nothing Nikki,go" _She took a deep breath before she slowly made her way closer to where the were being careful to remain out of the camera's view not really sure she even belonged there.

_**On camera**_

_"__I'm Renee Young here at the opening of world renown Chef the very handsome Davis's new restaurant Cristabel.I am actually here with and his lovely daughter Tessa. Now I noticed there's no lady on your arm,is it safe to say you're single?"_

_"__Not technically but, there is a very special woman on my arm"_

_"__Oh, really...where is she?"_

_"__She's a bit camera shy but, she's right there next to your camera man."_

_"__HI NIKKI!" Tessa shouted and waved causing the camera to turn towards her she smiled and waved back trying not to look as embarrassed as she felt._

_"__Oh so that's her, she's very pretty"_

_"__She's gorgeous now can we get back on track?"_

_"__Uh yeah"_

_**off Camera**_

Nikki felt her cheeks heat up when Tony called her gorgeous. Not thinking she could take anymore embarrassment she hurried off and found her table and took a seat.

_"__Hey guys"_ She greeted , taking a good look she saw that not only were Brie and Bryan there but, Sasha, Roman as well as Cameron and Antonio.

_"__Excuse you, Nicole Garcia -Colace where you been?" _

_"__Minding my business Cameron Lynn Cesaro"_ The mother to be rolled her eyes but remained persistent.

_"__Don't get cute with me. I saw you over there tryin not to jump on blondie for standing too close to your man...It's ok, I understand"_

_"__sweetie leave Nicole alone please"_

_"__Thank you Antonio"_

An easy flow of conversation fell over the table of friends as they enjoyed each other's company Tessa soon joined them having elected to sit with Nikki instead of with Eve and Tony's parents an act that did not go unnoticed by Brie, Sasha and especially not Cameron.

_"__Oh ,Sasha before I forget I need you tomorrow."_

_"__For what"_

_"__Tessa and I are having a girls day and since you're my girl I've already got Brie on board an-"_

_"__Ahem….excuse you what about me?" Cameron interrupted wondering why her friends were not including her in this._

_"__Well we'd planned on going to the spa and you don't like them nor can you even go in your condition because of all the fumes when it comes in the manis and pedis we were planning on we were gonna go to the mall and walk around and we didn't think you'd like that."_

_"__SOOOOOO plan something else"_

_"__Like what Prego?"_ Sasha spoke this time ,truth be told she and Cameron barely got along mainly because they both had such dominating personalities it was odd because so did Nikki and they got along with her fine.

_"__We could hang out , watch movies, have girl talk and eat"_

_"__...how are we supposed to have 'girl talk' we ALL know what you're itching to discuss and we can't with her there so we're trying to keep busy so we don't slip"_

Cameron rolled her eyes but luckily let the subject drop, The twins and Sasha all knew that they would have to give some MAJOR dirt for Cam to forgive them and Nikki knew just what would do the trick,she still hadn't told any of them about having sex with Anthony and Cameron would absolutely love to be the first to Orders were taken and soon the food was brought out. Much to everyone's surprise Tony sent them out desserts , a round of teasing when they saw what looked to be a double serving of triple chocolate cheesecake placed in front of Nikki. It was sweet because everyone knew it was her absolute favorite dessert and she dug into it almost immediately.

_"__Everyone enjoying the food?"_ Tony who had been incredibly busy the entire night , between cooking and mingling he felt terrible for ignoring his guests and more importantly ignoring Nikki .everyone began talking at once telling him how_ 'great it was'_ except Nikki who hadn't stopped eating or even noticed he'd all eyes were on her as she continued to devour the chocolate began to run his fingers along her neck and spine trying to get her attention. It took a moment but soon she felt the tickle and squirmed, she was soon aware of all of the sets of eyes on her.

_"__What?"_ She looked around and her eyes widened and she blushed a deep red when she noticed Tony standing there.

_"__Is it good?_" She nodded unable to speak afraid to embarrass herself further wondering if there would ever be a time where she wouldn't feel like wanting the floor to open up and swallow her in his looked over towards Sasha for a silent piece of advice but, she was only met with a sly took a deep breath finally finding her voice.

_"__yes , everything's delicious but I think you know that already" _

_"__I'm glad you're pleased, Brie do you mind keeping an eye on Tessa ? I have some people I want Nikki to meet"_ Even though he spoke to her sister his emerald eyes never left hers and what made it worse was his hand caressing her shoulder, it took all of her willpower not to moan or bite her had a feeling that she wouldn't be able to keep her legs closed around him , hell even right now the only thing stopping her from attacking him was the fact that they were in public.

_"__Sure"_ She placed her hand in his outstretched one hoping that hers wasn't too sweaty and let herself be led off into the crowd.

They soon arrived at another table and Nikki's feet seemed to stop working while her heart sped was there but what caught her eye was the older African American woman with a very familiar looking smile sitting next to who she assumed was her husband who looked a lot like Anthony all in all they were a very attractive couple. They smiled upon their arrival.

_"__Hey I found her. Mom ,Dad this is these are my parents Regina and Marcus"_

_"__Hi...um...it It's nice to meet you,both um oh my gosh I must sound like an idiot"_

_"__Don't be so nervous Nikki"_ Regina spoke giving her a reassuring smile that did it's job of calming her frazzled pulled out a chair for her to sit before taking the seat next to her.

_"__So Nicole, Tony tells us you're a partner at the Triple H ad agency, they're damn good. How long have you been there?"_ Nikki swallowed knowing this was just them making sure that she wasn't a gold digger

_"__Thank you, I've been there for about seven years. I started as an unpaid intern and when I graduated from school they offered me a job as a junior associate and from there I worked my way up. I got the job as partner after I landed the multi million dollar Del Rio account."_ His father seemed impressed but his mother was gonna be a bit harder to get along with.

_"__Um, Nikki I hear you're working on a campaign for Maryse."_She raised a questioning eyebrow towards Eve at that she hadn't told anyone about the account .

_"__yeah, how did you know?"_ She tried to be as friendly as possible without seeming too hostile.

_"__Oh I'm her lawyer and one of her best friends, she's REALLY excited that you're working on her campaign."_ Nikki smiled at that and tried not to seem too arrogant, the last thing she wanted was for Anthony's parents to think she was a complete bitch.

Tony was just about to speak when a waiter approached him.

_"__ you're needed in the back"_

_"__Ok, Nikki did you want to join me?"_She nodded and tried to keep from jumping up and running away. He took her hand and led her towards the kitchen but instead of stopping he kept walking he led her through a side door and up some stairs to what looked like an office.

_"__What is this place?"_

_"__I can see how this rinky dink little office would be disappointing compared to your huge executive suite"_

_"__ha ha , what are we doing here?"_

_"__Honestly I just needed to get away,I told Doug to come over and give me an out if it looked too tense and you looked ready to run"_

_"__Is your mother always that friendly?"_

_"__That went a lot better than it usually does"_

_"__ok...new topic"_

Nikki walked over to stand in front of him she ran her hands up the front of his chef's jacket idly playing with the buttons, he smirked at the seductive edge in her voice.

_"__So, what did you wanna talk about"_ his arms snaked around her waist and much to her disappointment his hands went to her lower back resting just above her butt.

_"__Tony"_ she was getting hornier by the second and her lack of underwear was making it a lot harder to hide how wet she was.

_"__Hmmm"_ He could practically smell how ready she was hell he was about to burst through his pants he just needed her to tell him what she stood silent waiting on him to do something she could feel how ready he was but wondered why he wasn't attempting to do it hit her, he was keeping his promise to let her dictate the pace of the relationship .She reached back and moved his hands underneath her dress before she grabbed his face and brought him down for a took that as the green light and lifted her up and placed her on the small desk causing the dress to bunch up around her wrapped her legs around his waist and pulled him slid his tongue past her cherry red painted lips eager for another taste of her. His fingers danced along her thighs inching closer and closer to her aching core. She lifted his jacket and quickly went to work on his belt, he quickly stopped her hands .

_"__what's wrong?"_ Nikki broke the kiss and looked at him in confusion.

_"__I don't have a condom here"_ Nikki looked into her clutch and pulled out a tiny foil packet.

_"__why Nicole are you trying to take advantage of me?"_ Tony teased as he removed his jacket and tossing it somewhere behind her followed by his t-shirt, and undoing his belt and pants. Nikki's mouth watered when his cock came into her view and handed him the condom. While he put it on she unzipped her dress and waited for him to finish. Once the condom was on he looked up and froze,her gorgeous frame stretched out and on full display for him to enjoy was enough to make him cum right there. Leaning down he used the flat of his tongue and licked a trail from her dripping center up the center of her chest and into her mouth and connected their lips in a searing kiss.

Nikki broke the kiss and threw her head back in pleasure as he sank his cock into her channel. He stopped once he was fully sheathed to calm himself down , he wrapped his arms around her body and pulled her flush against his body and planted kisses along her neck.

_"__Fuck, you feel so good"_ he whispered into her ear as he tried to calm his racing heart.

_"__please….move"_was Nikki's breathless reply , she couldn't take the torture any longer she needed to cum and after their last encounter she needed him to do it .He slowly pulled out and waited a moment before he quickly sank back into her warm heat ,grinding his pelvis against hers drawing a moan of pleasure from both Nikki and himself, he kept that up for a few couldn't take the sweet torture and needed him to put out the flame and dug her heels and nails into his had never felt so good in her entire life Tony had finally quit teasing and started fucking her properly his cock pistoned into her stopped just for a moment to unwrap himself from her grasp and lay her back on the, wrapping his arms around her thighs he then continued to pummel her sensitive core.

"_TONY,TONY OH FUCKIN SHIT III'M I'M GONNA CUM!"_ Nikki cried out the feel of his cock hitting her g-spot in this new stars were starting to form in her eyes as she writhed in pleasure on the surprisingly sturdy worn desk. Tony was incredibly grateful that he'd gotten this room sound proofed,between his moans, Nikki's screams and the brutal force at which he was fucking her there was no doubt someone would have heard them.

_"__TONY YESSSSSS!"_ Her back arched and her body went rigid as her orgasm hit and a few thrusts later Anthony followed her over the edge screaming her name in lowered her legs and pulled his now spent cock from her body ,they spent the next few minuted freshening up so they could go down and rejoin the party.


	13. Girl Talk

Nikki awoke the next morning feeling relaxed and sated she rolled over and found that Tony was gone. She figured he'd be up by now but she thought he would have at least said something before he left. She closed her eyes and thought about the night before.

**_***Flashback***_**

**"****_I'm lonely" Nikki pouted into the phone, it was midnight and once again she couldn't sleep so she'd called Tony to see if he was awake he replied that he had just gotten home and Eve who had stayed over to watch Tessa and put her to bed had just left. She looked over at Gucci who lay in her bed in the corner sleeping peacefully._**

**"****_What do you want me to do about it? She could hear the humor in his voice and it did nothing to cure her sour mood._**

**"****_stop laughing at me"_**

**"****_I'm not...I swear" he tried his best to keep his composure._**

**"****_You're lucky you're cute or else I'd kick your ass"_**

**"****_Ok...I'm sorry"_**

**"****_sorry's not gonna cut it."_**

**"****_awww what do you want, More cheesecake?"She thought for a moment before she answered._**

**"****_how about I come over and we have a sleepover?" Tony stayed silent for a moment wondering if she was actually serious._**

**"****_Anthony….are you there?" Nikki bit her lip wondering if she'd said the wrong thing._**

**"****_Ye yeah …..I'm here"_**

**"****_so, do you want me to come over" _**

**"****_yeah" She couldn't keep the smile off of her face or out of her voice._**

**"****_I'll be over in twenty" She hung up the phone and slipped on a pair of yoga pants under her silk negligee and threw some clothes into her oversized louis vuitton bag along with her toiletries and some food for Gucci. She gathered her bag,the pooch and her car keys before heading to Tony's._**

**_She arrived fifteen minutes later and sent a quick text telling him she was outside. Once she was inside she sat the dog bed in the corner of the living room and got Gucci settled in before they quietly made their way to his room. As soon as his door shut her lips were on his and she backed him up and shoved him on the bed and proceeded to give him the ride of his life. _**

**_***End Flashback***_**

The sound of her phone ringing broke her out of her daze, she reached over to the nightstand and looked at the caller ID answering immediately when she saw it was Brie and answered.

_"__Hey BB"_

_"__Ew, don't call me that. ."_

_"__Sorry,good morning Brianna whatever do I owe the pleasure of your call"_ Was Nikki's sickeningly sweet reply.

_"__You bitch"_ Brie hated when her sister acted like that ,she waited silently ,listening as Nikki got in a good laugh at her expense. After a couple minutes with no end in sight she decided to burst her little bubble.

_"__So, Nicole...out of curiosity….where are you right now?"_ Nikki's laughter came to an abrupt end .

_"__What do you mean 'where am I' I'm at home"_ Brie rolled her eyes as she stood on her front porch staring directly at Nikki's Range Rover that was suspiciously parked in Anthony's driveway, she knew the car belonged to her sister because of the tell tale custom 'Bella 02' License plate .

_"__That's funny..because Bryan took Josie for a walk earlier and he said he saw your car...I thought he was crazy cause why would you be out at five o'clock on a sunday morning? and now I come outside to get something out of the car and wouldn't cha know I see YOUR car at Anthony's house….care to explain?"_ Nikki swallowed hard and looked around as if the answer were hiding somewhere in the room.

_"__Ummm, we're kinda….um"_ She bit her lip still unsure of what to call this, it looked like just pure lust but, she truly DID care for Tony and she knew in her heart he felt something for her.

_"__I'm waiting Nicole"_

_"__We're dating"_ the line went silent for a moment before she heard the over excited voice of her brother in law.

_"__I KNEW IT!"_ She jumped when she heard Bryan's voice shout through the phone, (apparently he'd been listening from the upstairs phone) followed by Brie yelling and telling him to mind his own business and hang up the phone.

_"__So you sneak over his house in the middle of the night, leaving your puppy alone for sex you whore?" _

Brie was practically glowing at how perfect it was, she and Bryan had noticed the way she and Tony were looking at each other at her BBQ and knew there were some serious sparks flying.

_"__for your information I brought Gucci with me"_They were silent for a moment before Brie spoke.

_"__I'm happy for you"_

"Thanks, that means a lot coming from you"

They talked for a few more minutes before they agreed to meet up at noon before they hung up. Nikki then sent a quick text to Sasha telling her the new plans for the day. Once she finished she decided to get dressed and actually make an appearance. The second she opened the bedroom door she was assaulted by a delicious smell and smiled as she followed it to the kitchen.

She stood by the door and watched as Tessa helped her father make breakfast.

_"__Nice to see you're finally awake"_

Tony didn't even have to look up to know she was there he could just….FEEL her. Tessa's head shot up from where she was carefully grating cheese , her face broke into a grin when she saw Nikki standing there.

_"__NIKKI!...Daddy can I get down please"_ He stopped what he was doing and lifted her off of the stool and set her on the floor where she practically flew over to Nikki and nearly tackled her in a hug.

_"__Good morning princess"_

Tony's heart filled with Joy knowing that Tessa loved Nikki just as much as he did and smiled when she bent down and hoisted the child up into her arms. He tried as hard as he could to stop the flooding thoughts of her as his wife and pregnant waddling around in THEIR had ben far too long since he'd woke up with a woman in his arms and he truely missed it , last night when Nikki called and asked to come over it was a miracle that he didn't pass out. He refocused his attention to the omelets that he was making. Nikki walked over to the island with curious eyes wondering what he was cooking.

_"__What's cookin good lookin?"_ Nikki joked as she watched him work earning her a chuckle from Tony and a laugh from Tessa.

_"__Steak omelette with peppers and onions and swiss cheese and a side of chocolate chip Pancakes Per Tessa's request."_

_"__It smells delicious"_

_"__I'm glad you approve"_ Nikki's attention suddenly went to Tessa who began wriggling in her arms as if she were searching for something.

_"__What's wrong Baby?"_ She stopped her search and looked into her eyes

_"__Where's Gucci?"_ As if on cue Gucci came trotting into the kitchen making her presence known giving a small bark as if to greet her. Nikki and Tony watched as her face lit up at the sight of the puppy. She wriggled out of Nikki's arms and ran over to pick the pooch up and disappeared out of the kitchen leaving the adults alone.

Nikki took a seat at the island and watched as Tony prepared the steak and veggies for their breakfast.

_"__I thought you had to go open Cristabel today?" _

_"__I'm playing hooky__"_

_"__Tony you can't blow off work"_ Nikki looked worried and a bit guilty at the fact that he'd planned on going to Work today and changed his plans to accommodate her.

_"__It's fine, It's the perfect learning experience for the culinary students and the pros I hired to work without me breathing down their neck and when all else fails Dolph's there to catch them."_ She nodded but, still felt a bit wrong, She'd met Dolph last night , he was….interesting and not at all the type of guy she'd expect Tony to associate with but, he did seem like a great guy and a hard worker.

_"__I still don't like it…..but I guess I can let it pass"_ He leaned down and gave her a quick kiss on the lips.

_"__Why don't you come over here and help me."_

he replied once he pulled away to finish bit her lip and slowly got up she was perhaps the worst cook on earth mostly surviving off of salads and Takeout.

_"__OK"_ she inched around the counter and stood beside Tony waiting on his instructions. After several agonizing minutes and about five burnt pancakes (Because there was NO WAY she was touching the omelets) later He'd finally managed to coach her into making edible the food was done they called Tessa back into the kitchen to eat, it took a minute because she insisted on feeding Gucci they began eating there was a knock at the door and Tony excused himself to answer the door.

Nikki nearly swallowed her fork when she saw Tony walk back into the kitchen with Brie in look on her twin sister's face was made Nikki want to go upstairs and jump out of the jumped up and gave her a hug in greeting before sitting back down and finishing her offered Brie some food which she declined in favor of sitting uncomfortably close to Nikki and giving her the perpetual 'side eye' until she'd finally gotten sick of it.

_"__What Brie, . ?"_

Brie merely smiled and bumped her shoulder, Nikki rolled her eyes and tried to ignore her overzealous sibling but it appeared Brie was having none of stopped once again to acknowledge her sister.

_"__Do you mind Brianna,we're trying to eat breakfast"_

_"__Nothing, gheez"_ Nikki tried to ignore her sister and eat but she was getting on her nerves so finally she just gave up and emptied her plate and rinsed it off before placing her dishes in the walked back over to the table and stood behind Tony, he leaned back against her breast and looked up into her eyes.

_"__Were gonna run and get Sasha and Cammie then we're gonna come back to get that ok?"_

_"__Yeah, hurry though she gets impatient fast"_ Without thinking she leaned down and gave him a quick kiss on the lips then walked over to Tessa and gave her one on the cheek before she went to get her shoes and purse.

_"__alright Breezie lets go"_ Brie waved at the duo before following her sister out of the door.

Brie sat in the passenger seat as Nikki drove,she wanted to address not only what happened back at Tony's house but, also what Nikki had revealed to her over the phone only she didn't want anything to have to be repeated so she decided to wait until Sasha and Cameron were in the car.

They pulled up to Sasha and Joe's home a few minutes later and walked up to the door. Nikki knocked on the door and after a moment Joe answered earning curious looks from the twins.

_"__Damn Joe ,are ALL of your shirts dirty?" _Brie questioned as they walked past the shirtless man into the home.

_"__nobody's telling you to look Brianna"_

Nikki wanted to scream . got near each other Brie and Joe ended up at each other's never changed Brie would pester and annoy knowing full well it would piss Joe off and within minutes all hell would break loose .She didn't know WHY Brie enjoyed antagonizing Joe and neither did Sasha which was why they tried to keep their time together to a minimum.

_"__SASHA BRING YOUR RATCHET ASS ON!"_ Nikki yelled up the stairs trying to ignore the bickering pair behind her.

_"__WHO YOU CALLIN RATCHET, BITCH!?"_ She heard Sasha yell down the stairs and soon appeared looking as sexy as ever in her green house of Dereon maxi dress and black greecian sandals,her ever present Michael Khors sunglasses perched on top of her head and her Prada bag slung over her wrist.

_"__Change of plans girly we're going shopping so Cameron won't bitch at us for ten years about being left out." _

It was true Cameron was never good with being excluded, the last time it happened they were in high school they made the mistake of going prom dress shopping the week she was sick, that was over ten years ago and she STILL brought it up from time to time.

_"__We're still bringing Tess though"_ Sasha nodded heading towards the door with Nikki right behind her.

_"__Alright ladies let's go get the loud ass mother to be"_ She threw over her shoulder

_" __And Joe some more shirts"_ Brie threw in and ran out the door before Joe could get to her.

_ "__Why do you always start with him Brie?"_ Nikki huffed and unlocked the doors

_"__Because it's fun"_ was Brie's reply as if it was the most obvious thing on earth.

_"__Just get in the car"_ Sasha opened her door and shoved her in head first before climbing in the back seat.

_"__Brie , you're officially banned from my house…..I just don't know how two people so laid back and easygoing manage to raise SO much hell when put together"_ Sasha shook her head as she read the angry text from Joe.

_"__He's gonna snap one day and turn me into an only child and Sasha into one of those women who plan their lives around visiting day at the state pen."_

Sasha laughed from the back seat as Brie smacked her didn't take long for them to get to Cameron's house, a look of concern crossed all of their faces when they saw Antonio sitting on the jumped put and ran over to him.

_"__What's wrong?"_ He looked up at them and shook his head

_"__Cammie's in another one of her moods and I didn't feel like dodging any flying objects"_

_"__WHO THE FUCK YOU OUT THERE TALKIN TO!"_ They heard Cameron's oh so sweet voice come from somewhere in the house.A moment later the front door flew open and there stood their angry friend the moment she saw them her mood changed from murderous to delighted and she smiled.

_"__Oh HEEEYYYYY Girls , what y'all doing here?"_

Nikki , Brie Sasha and Antonio all exchanged confused looks.

_"__We came to pick you up for our girl's day,Nikki and I felt bad about leaving you out so we figured Tessa would probably love to go shopping and we could stop and get some ice cream afterwards."_

"Ok let me grab my purse "She made a move to get her purse but stopped when she remembered something.

_"__Nikki….where you been all morning? I tried to call you twice"_ All eyes suddenly went to Nikki.

_"__She went for an EARLY morning drive….or was it a late night?"_ Brie teased , Cameron and Sasha looked between the sisters waiting for someone to speak.

_"__OK , in the house I gotta hear this"_ Sasha shoved both siblings into the house and towards the living room with Cameron leading the way.

_"__Alright Nicole speak"_ The mom to be spoke once they'd all gotten comfortable.

_"__I was with Anthony"_

_"__I KNEW IT!"_ Sasha shouted as she jumped up and started strutting around the room , proud that her suspicions back at the barbecue were confirmed.

_"__Girl Bye….you doin booty calls now,Nicole Stephanie Garcia Colace I KNOW I raised you better than that?"_ Cameron threw in once Sasha finally quieted down and took her seat.

_"__Forget Prego for a second ALL I wanna know is,was it good?"_ Sasha questioned with a smile on her face and a curious look in her eye.

_"__Guess you'll never know"_ Nikki replied. Cameron felt like crying ,how could one of her best friends hold information of this magnitude from her.

_"__Nicole...we have known each other since the fifth grade, Come on ...give up the details"_ Nikki rolled her eyes at their incredibly thirsty behavior.

_"__Fine….It was AMAZING, holy shit the man is hung like a horse and don't get me started on his stamina."_

A lusty smile appeared on her face as a shiver rolled down her spine at the memory of their trysts entered her mind.

_"__Damn Nikki, Anthony hit it so good you're having dick aftershock" _Sasha quipped causing Nikki to blush as Sasha along with Brie and Cameron laughed at her expense.

_"__fuck all of you with a rusty spike,Now come on let's go."_ She got up and headed towards the door not bothering to wait for the rest of them. Brie , Sasha and Cameron made it to the car just as She started the engine.

_"__damn Nik , you in a real hurry to get back to stuff ain't you?"_ Cameron commented from the passenger seat ,she quickly buckled in her seat belt because Nikki was clearly not waiting.

_"__Nikki, all joking aside it's about time you realizes he was in love with you,it's been painfully obvious since high school."_ Sasha spoke up after a few moments of silence,Nikki rolled her eyes not believing what she was saying...sure she knew Tony liked her but she highly doubted he could be in love with her.

_"__Yeah because we all know the number one way a man shows his love for you is to start a family with another woman"_ there was an awkward silence following the bustier twin's knew no matter how 'over' john she was his hurtful words still floated around in her head

"Well you were so far up John's ass that he probably just said fuck it , you can't POSSIBLY think he was gonna be a virgin until you woke up and realized how much of an ass John ave you your space and respected your relationship, you remember the old saying if you love something set it free and yadda ,yadda" Brie , ever the reasonable one countered.

_"__Whatever" _Nikki mumbled putting an end to the conversation.

They pulled up outside of Tony's home and Nikki parked before she got out and went to get the little girl whom she'd become incredibly attached to over the past couple she had even made it to the porch the front door flew open and speak of the devil the little green eyed angel came barreling out and nearly tackled her to the ground in a hug.

_"__Nikki you came back. I was so worried"_ her face contorted in confusion she looked up and saw Anthony standing there with a sad smile on his face.

_"__Why wouldn't I come back?"_

_ "__My mommy kissed Daddy the way you did when you left and told him she would be back. but, she never did"_ Tessa clung tightly to Nikki and she could hear the fear in the child's tiny voice.

_"__Well I'm back princess and we're gonna have some girl time,now go get in the car with Brie and I'm gonna talk to daddy for a minute"_ She gave Nikki one last squeeze before she took off for the looked back to Tony who looked mildly embarrassed .

_"__I'm sorry about that , I've been trying to calm her down but once she gets worked up it's hard to stop her."_ She walked up the rest of the stairs and pulled Tony into a hug which he graciously accepted.

_"__Don't be sorry baby"_ It took everything in him not to say those three little words that seemed to be on the tip of his tongue for as long as he'd known her.

The sound of a car horn ruined their moment

_"__COME ONNNNNN NICOLE WE GOT SHOPPING TO DO!"_

_"__Same old Cameron huh?"_ Nikki chuckled and nodded before releasing her hold on him and going to get back into the car.

_"__Alright ladies….let's go spend some money"_

_"__Nikki I think you look beautiful in that one"_

Tessa spoke as she saw Nikki emerge from the dressing room in a knee length form fitted white dress luckily her black pumps went perfect with it so she didn't have to buy new ones. She didn't want to try the dress on at first but with some persuasion from the rest of the girls she'd caved in and tried it far they'd been to Macy's ,Saks off fifth avenue,DSW ,Justice (for Tessa they had amazing clothes for girls her age and Nikki just had to buy her several outfits that she looked great in) they were now in the Michael Khors store and Nikki was positive Anthony was going to kill her for buying a six hundred dollar backpack for an eight year old but it was her money and she would spend it whatever way she damn well pleased.

_" __you should get it"_ Sasha added in a sing song voice as she danced in her seat .

_"__Yyyyyaaaasss girl and you know WHO__would LOVE to see you in that"_ Cameron teased

"I think he'd love to see it crumpled up on his bedroom floor more" Brie added under her breath but Cameron heard her and started laughing.

_"__well BRIE since you're such a comedian why don't you come help me out of this thing"_

Nikki turned and walked back into the dressing room with Brie right behind knew something was on Nikki's mind and that was the real reason her sister wanted to be alone with her.

_"__Alright Nicole, tell me what happened"_ Brie cut right to the chase once they were back in the changing room ,speaking softly so no one else could hear turned around so that Brie could unzip her .

_"__do you remember earlier when Tessa hugged me?"_ Nikki replied in the same hushed tone.

_"__yeah"_

_"__She said that she was scared that I wouldn't come back, because that's what happened to her mom"_

_"__So are you gonna ask Tony about it?"_ Nikki shrugged her shoulders as she slid out of the dress and put it on the hanger. Brie's eyebrows furrowed together.

_"__Nikki...are,are you wearing underwear?"_ Nikki looked down at her pink boyshorts before looking back at her sister.

_"__of course I'm wearing underwear I'm trying on clothes. I don't want my bare vagina touching clothes that god knows how many people have tried on."_ Brie chuckled and handed Nikki her clothes before walking out and letting her change in private


	14. Pressure

It was Monday afternoon ,Nikki sat at her desk listening intently as Maryse spoke,although the pitch meeting wasn't until Thursday the overzealous French Canadian had stopped by for an update. Alexa had come down with a stomach bug so it was just herself and AJ for the day and possibly for the week.

_"__I understand your Concerns but, I assure you this will 'll keep it classy and upscale although not too upscale ,sort of like a 'forbidden fruit' deal .If it seems unreachable it'll be more desirable. we'll keep the campaign simple yet grand"_

_"__How do you propose we do that?"_ this time it was AJ who spoke.

_"__We'll take some of the more vibrant clothes like ..this blue dress."_ she pointed to the dress Maryse was wearing which was almost a neon color. "we pair it with black background and white accessories for the ad campaign to make the color pop more."

_"__Yeah ,It'll show just how hard the color pops and we can use both pearls and costume jewelry to show how versatile each piece research shows that people are willing to pay and shop more for clothes that they can wear to a wider variety of places."_

_"__I love it , when can we start"_ Maryse was thrilled she knew Nicole would be able to bring her vision to life.

_"__We'll get started first thing in the morning"_ The blonde squeaked with excitement as all three women stood up .Maryse ran over giving both Nikki and AJ a hug before she practically floated out of the office and onto the elevator.

_"__She's a little ball of energy"_Aj commented and Nikki couldn't keep the smile off of her face.

_"__Alright ,come on we got work to do the sooner we start the sooner we can get going"_

Nikki was relaxing on the couch after a very stressful day at work after Maryse left she and AJ had begun making all the necessary calls and getting everything ready for the launch of her newest collection and as if she wasn't high maintenance enough her husband had called and suggested that they have a 'launch party' instead of a normal fashion show, his wife had fell in love with the idea. Honestly Nikki thought it was a great idea as well but now she was stuck having to plan the damn thing because in Maryse's words '_she didn't trust anyone except her with this project'_.Although Aj was incredibly helpful she needed Alexa back FAST. There was no way She and AJ could handle the party ,Maryse and her annoying husband insisted on having in three weeks AND they still had the Heyman account to work on.

Her phone snapped her from her wandering thoughts as she reached up and swiped the phone to answer it and immediately hitting the speakerphone button.

_"__Hello"_ She tried not to sound as worn out as she felt.

_"__you sound beat,long day at the office?"_

The smile that appeared on her face when she heard Tony's voice was dangerously close to splitting it in two.

_"__yes, Maryse came in because she couldn't wait until Thursday and now thanks to her god damn husband I have three weeks to plan a launch party for her new collection. I need to find a venue, models , food , drinks and to find a photographer to take pictures of the models hair and makeup people to primp them , ugh this is gonna be hell "_

_"__ummm…..sweetie you're talking to a chef that owns a restaurant. I think I could handle food drinks and owns a salon which would cover hair and makeup if I'm not mistaken "_

_"__Tony I appreciate it really I do but, I can't just keep asking for favors I-"_

_"__you dropped two grand on my daughter yesterday and I think i remember you saying something along the lines of 'We're a couple babe it's not just ME anymore it's US' when I insisted on paying you back. so how are WE gonna do this?"_

Nikki sighed in defeat,she lov-cared about Tony a lot but she couldn't help but feel like she was back in high school slacking off on her work only to have Tony save her. She knew he didn't expect anything in return , he never had.

_"__ok,fine you can help….But,you're not doing this for free I expect a bill"_ Tony rolled his eyes , not even worried about the money , he had enough of it and if Nikki needed his help then he'd give it to her.

_"__Fine" _

_"__I mean it Anthony"_

_"__I know and you'll get a bill"_

_"__Promise me"Nikki pressed_

_"__I Promise you'll get a bill"_

_"__oh no Mister I know that game ,promise me you'll bill me for the food AND the drinks AND to use the restaurant RIGHT NOW"_

Tony huffed his frustration was evident , she was making it incredibly difficult to find a loophole that he could use.

_"__ok you win ,I promise, whatever you want baby I just wanna help"_

_"__Thank you"_ Nikki said practically bouncing in her seat, she looked over at the clock and saw it was past ten.

_"__Baby I gotta go so I can get all of my beauty sleep"_ The now giddy Brunette said as she grabbed her phone and began shutting off all of the lights and making sure everything was locked up before heading upstairs.

_"__Ok sweet dreams"_ They hung up and Nikki brushed her teeth and hopped into bed and was asleep almost instantly.

_"__So you wasn't even gonna ask us for help?"_

It was Friday evening and Nikki along with Cameron, Alicia,Aksana and Sasha were in Brie's kitchen. they had originally been discussing Cameron's baby shower (which as the godmother Alicia and Brie by extent because Bryan was the godfather) but, Aksana made one little comment about how worn Nikki looked which forced her to spill the beans about the launch party for 'House of Maryse' in just two short weeks which they had to divide the attention between the Heyman account,thankfully that had gone great but, she'd had to turn over the reigns to Stephanie though she assured Paul that she would still be very hands on with him and to come to her with any to mention her hormones had been all over the place lately after she'd had what her friends referred to as 'the dream' again she didn't dare mention that especially around Cameron who she was sure would walk next door and rip Tony a new one.

Their evening of baby shower planning had quickly took a backseat to Cameron's rage about why Nikki hadn't come to them for help and why she insisted on making Tony promise to bill her.

_"__You're pregnant Cam , and may very well have the baby in the next month how are you gonna handle hair and makeup"_ Alicia cut in knowing her sister had no sense of the word rest.

_"__Can we PLEASE get back to the Baby Shower now?"_ Nikki's words fell on deaf ears

_"__You could ask Velvet"_ All eyes turned to Bryan, in all of their bickering none of them had heard him walk in.

_"__Who the hell is Velvet?"_ Sasha spoke for the first time in what felt like forever ,It was hard to get a word in once Cameron started talking.

_"__She's Seth's fiance"_ That earned him a confused look from everyone in the room,it took her a moment to think but, Brie soon remembered.

_"__OH,I remember now She's a fantasy makeup artist. she does that weird artistic sci-fi , fantasy movie make up it would be perfect Nikki you said you wanted drama, and Cameron has a bunch of girls at the shop that can help so SHE doesn't have to do anything she can just direct ...like she would do even if she wasn't pregnant"_

_"__Shut up"_ Cameron rolled her eyes but even she couldn't help but to laugh.

_"__Ok now we Just need a Photographer and models and to figure out how to fix up the has to look understated yet Sophisticated….I'll think of something"_ Brie finished she kind of enjoyed decorating and if her big sister needed her she was going to be there . Bryan walked over and put an arm around his wife and sister in law and hugged them close.

_"__see,we've got this Nik"_

_"__ok it's gotten now can we get back to the baby shower that's happening TOMORROW and less about the other insane people I'm forced to deal with."_ Sasha shoved her shoulder and laughed.

_"__whatever bitch"_

Thankfully the conversation soon switched away from Nikki and for that she was grateful and after a couple more hours they had managed to finish mapping out the schedule for the following for Nikki Bryan happened to tell Brie that he was heading over to Tony's house because he was quote 'not emotionally ready for their brand of girl talk'.This brought the conversation RIGHT back to her.

_"__Speaking of "_ Cameron looked over at Nikki expectantly.

_"__WAIT, when did this happen?"_ Alicia looked at her in shock, her sister had told her about Tony's crush on Nicole back in highschool that in her opinion hadn't ever went away but Cameron had failed to tell her that they had started dating.

_"__why is everyone so interested in my love life?"_

_"__Because you actually HAVE one to take interest in Can we PLEASE get back to the point?"_ Nikki looked over at sasha and mouthed 'thank you' the rest of the women groaned for a moment but eventually they got back to the subject and after a couple more hours they eventually finished up.


	15. Brave

Nikki sat next to the prize table in Victoria's beautifully decorated backyard watching on as everyone hurried to finish their "Baby crossword puzzle" she was the designated timekeeper. She knew it was only because she tended to get emotional when she got around baby things but.

_"__PENS DOWN!"_

Sasha yelled snapping Nikki from her daydream,Brie could tell she wasn't really in the spirit of night they'd talked well into the early morning about her insecurities. She'd found out that Nikki was still a bit guarded with Tony, she needed to know if he wanted the same things she did but it was WAY too early to talk to him about tried to talk her into it, marriage and kids was a huge subject and it was best for her to bring it up now rather than wait. Her opinion had fell on deaf ears, Nikki had always been the bullheaded twin.

_"__alright ladies ,it's the moment of truth"_ Victoria announced after everyone had calmed down. Nikki didn't hear much else after that having once again zoned out.

_"__I'm worried about her"_ Sasha had been handing the prizes out because Nikki's mind had been wandering all day, as much as she tried to hide it they all knew she was feeling down Brie nodded in agreement.

_"__She needs to talk to Tony about how she feels"_

_"__What's wrong?"_Sasha was now all ears the last time they had seen her this upset was before she left John.

_"__She had 'The Dream' again"_

_"__Oh god, why does she do this to herself?" _

_"__I don't know but, if she doesn't say something….I am"_

_"__Nikki ,I tell you this because I love you, . . you're just gonna keep stressing about it until you do"_

_"__Brie , It can wait" _The baby shower had gone off without any major missteps,as far as Nikki been daydreaming the entire time she hadn't been any and Cameron were busy passing out favors and bidding the rest of the guests farewell while they cleaned up the backyard 's mood had only gotten worse since she'd told Brie what happened.

_"__What IS 'the dream'...IF you don't mind me asking?"_ Aksana wasn't normally one to pry but, she considered Nikki a good friend and if something was bothering her she was willing to do whatever she could to help.

_"__...My Baby, I was SO excited to tell John that we were gonna be 'd never gotten around to talking about it or marriage. Every time I brought it up he would buy me something.I thought he was just being sweet, but it was too late when I found out it was just 'hush money.I had the BIGGEST smile on my face when I told him,I know we'd JUST got out of college but, I knew we could make it work."_ Nikki took a deep breath ,she could feel the lump forming in her throat._ "Did you schedule an Abortion?….that was his response when I told him I was carrying his child.I told him I wanted to keep it and typical John, got mad and stormed out. But , the next few days he was sweet, attentive and loving …..and I fell for it."_

Before she could finish she broke down Brie pulled her sister close and cradled her in her looked around,judging by the mournful looks on her friends faces the rest of the story wasn't very happy.

_"__John had been putting some abortion pills in her food, those things are fuckin potent...She lost the the baby and that ugly mother fucker had the balls to look her in the face and say __'__you should had just done what I tell you to' __"_ Sasha whispered so that only Aksana could hear not wanting to upset her already distraught friend further.

_"__a couple days after that Nikki started having dreams about giving birth, and when the doctor hands her the baby ….it's... and..that's 'The Dream' ._ " They stopped a couple months after she broke up with John so that's why we think she needs to talk to Tony about how he feels and ask him if he's for or against having more kids so she can get a good night's sleep again."

Cameron finished as she walked over towards her friend with a damp cloth in hand ,she gently pulled Nikki away from Brie and began wiping her tear stained face. It had taken while but, she'd finally managed to calm down , she knew her friends were right , She needed to talk to Tony but, she was afraid of what he might if he turned out like John,what if he didn't see her as wife material?

_"__No matter what Nikki , we love you and we're here for you"_

Brie spoke up once again Nikki may have been older by a whopping five minutes but Brie had always been the 'stronger' of the two.

An hour later Nikki found herself pacing on the porch outside of Tony's house. She was so deep in thought she didn't hear the front door open nor did she see Tony leaning against the doorframe staring at her with curious green eyes.

_"__Is there a reason as to WHY you're doing this or have you taken up a new hobby?"_ Nikki screamed in fright when she heard his voice and slapped his chest.

_"__Geez , thanks for the heart attack asshole" _

He grabbed her hand and kissed the back of it.

_"__Sorry,it's just creepy to see your girlfriend on the porch pacing….DAMN"_ he'd gotten way off track when he took in her attire and nearly swallowed his tongue , he suddenly remembered what he was talking about and continued _"in a very…. sexy red dress,and those shoes make your legs look ,fuck me you look amazing …..I'm forgetting what I'm talking about….ok, there it look half angry and half scared… you didn't kill brie did you?"_

She pulled her hand from his and narrowed her eyes at him before squeezing past him and into the didn't worry about him following , she'd seen the look on his face when he looked at the dress and knew he wouldn't let her get too far without walked into the living room and made herself comfortable on the large brown crossed her legs making sure to keep herself covered, she needed his full attention.

_"__we need to talk"_

He took note of the serious tone of her voice and sat down in the chair that was directly across from the couch and gave her his full attention and waited for her to continue speaking.

_"__I've been thinking….about us…..a lot lately...and I need to know what you want out of this."_

_"__what I want out of what?"_ He was thoroughly confused and it showed in his face.

_"__This relationship"_ NIkki tried to stay calm but, the courage she'd gathered on the porch was quickly slipping to sit still any longer she stood and began pacing the length of the living room. He went to speak though the words died on his lips when he realized that she was mumbling to herself and listened closely.

_'__Come on Nikki you've gotta know, what if what if he doesn't want kids with you? what if he doesn't want what you want? what if he's just like John?'_

That last statement had him out of his seat as he moved to stand in front of her. he grabbed her face in his hands and looked into her eyes.

_"__Nicole you're driving yourself crazy, just tell me what's bothering you….PLEASE"_

She took a deep shaky breath and swallowed before she spoke.

_"__I want to get married and have children,and I need to know if you do too."_

The air grew thick as they stood silent,Nikki could barely breath as she saw the emotion play on Anthony's face. After what seemed like an eternity he finally spoke.

_"__Is that what you spent the last thirty-five minutes pacing on my porch about?"_

Nikki nodded feeling a bit more confident thanks to the light tone in his voice.

_"__Well, yo put your mind at ease YES I am open to marriage and Tessa would make an amazing big sist-are you pregnant?"_ Nikki narrowed her eyes and moved out from his grasp.

_"__NO...but,I needed to know that if and when it happened you don't freak out on me"_

She breathed a sigh of relief glad that she wasn't falling for a man that didn't to make their relationship more 'permanent'.

_"__So...while we're on the subject of putting things out there and opening up I think now is as good a time as any to tell you why Tessa freaked out on you last week."_


	16. Teach me,Please me

He gestured for her to sit back down and she complied, she'd gathered by the pictures scattered around the house it had something to do with Eve.

_"__I suspect you've noticed the pictures around here"_ he stopped and watched as Nikki nodded before continuing.

_"__well coincidentally they're of Eve's twin sister Crista,she was Tessa's mother….and my wife" _

_"__What happened to her?"_ The look on his face made her want to take the question back.

_"__It was four years ago ,she was taking some soup to her father who was sick at the was on her way back home…..but she never made it …...her car was side swiped by a drunk driver and forced into oncoming traffic…..She spent two weeks fighting for her life but, she didn't make it"_ Her heart broke for for him and especially for Tessa, no one deserved to lose their mother that soon in 's words rang in her head '_My mommy kissed Daddy the way you did when you left and told him she would be back but, she never did'_.

_"__She told you goodbye and gave you a kiss before she left"_He nodded and spoke.

_"__you're the first woman she's let herself get close to since her mom died."_

Nikki Carefully took off her shoes,straddled his lap and wrapped her arms around his shoulders pulling him into a tight soon felt his strong arms wrap around her and holding her closer.

_"__am I interrupting anything?"_ The couple turned around and saw Eve standing in the doorway but, she wasn't alone Standing next to her was the leggy blonde Maryse who had was the cause of a good portion of Nikki's stress.

_"__Eve,where's Tessa?"_ Tony questioned after a moment , he'd asked Eve to watch her for a couple hours while he went over some paperwork and here she was without her.

_"__I stopped by my parent's house and mom was making cookies so, long story short she's staying the night over there."_

He merely shrugged his shoulders and nodded , it wasn't uncommon for that to happen she tended to spend most weekends at either his or Crista and Eve's parent's realized after a moment that she was still seated in Tony's lap,she moved to sit back in her seat being incredibly careful so she didn't flash anyone . She partially regretted it because as soon as she did she saw the look of recognition crossed Maryse's face.

_"__Nikki? I didn't know that you were dating Anthony Davis.*Gasp* Is he making the food for the party?"_

_"__yes I am"_ He spoke before Nikki could even open her mouth, the squeal that left the designer's mouth was inhumane.

_"__This is so great, I can't WAIT to tell Mike."_ She then turned an slapped Eve's arm earning herself an indignant look"

_"__Ow , What was that for?"_ Eve rubbed her sore arm.

_"__For not telling me you knew him."_ Eve's jaw dropped in disbelief.

_"__I've told you SEVERAL times Maryse, It's not my fault you like to neglect information."_ Nikki smirked as the pair bickered they argued like she and her sister tended to do.

_"__I don't mean to be rude but, If you weren't bringing my child back why are you even here?"_

Eve rolled her eyes she was glad that she did leave Tessa at her parent's house ,walking in on your dad and his girlfriend in that position would have traumatized the poor kid.

_"__If you must know we were driving by so I figured 'why not tell you in person' "_

He nodded his understanding .

_"__I think I should be goin-"_ Nikki began but was cut off by Eve

_"__NO...no you stay ,we'll go"_ She then grabbed Maryse's arm and practically ran out of the door before Nikki could say anything else.

Nikki now stood standing in the luxurious kitchen in Tony's home trying to convince him that teaching her to cook was a bad , apparently he didn't care if his house was burned to the ground.

_"__This idea is useless"_

_"__c'mon ...It'll be fun"_ Tony wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her closer, the corners of his mouth curled up into a sly smile.

_"__I don't think I like the look on your face"_Nikki teased while trying to work her way out of his grip,she loved his cooking and didn't want to ruin it by cooking it.

_"__Alright...no more Guy"_ He turned her around in his arms to face the counter, she didn't know why she was allowing this. She looked down at the dough,sausage,sauce and cheese and guessed he wanted to make a pizza. She gasped when she felt one of his hands on her breast and the other was working it's way up her dress.

_"__W what are you doing?"_ Nikki's breath came in short pants as his hands groped her body.

_"__Don't worry about what I'm doing….just listen to my voice"_ She shivered when she felt his breath right against her ear ,Nikki was glad he was becoming more comfortable with touching her body intimately without her having to always say he could. She nodded and he quickly went to work instructing her on how to put the pizza together.

Tony smiled to himself as she followed his instructions perfectly, he knew her problem was most likely her nerves getting the better of her. His wandering hands did an excellent job of distracting her but, it was quickly beginning to took everything in him to keep the hand on her inner thigh from entering her.

Nikki couldn't concentrate on making dinner all she could think about was why his hand wasn't going up higher.

_"__I told you that you could cook"_

Nikki blinked a couple of times as she looked down at the delicious looking pizza. She was so preoccupied with trying to get his hand to give her some relief that she didn't even notice that she had flawlessly made a pepperoni pizza.

_"__Did I really make that?"_

_"__yup"_ He picked up a piece and bit into it, moaning in delight at the it up to her lips he silently urged her to take a bite.

_"__Are you sure it's good?….you're not lying to me are you?"_

_"__Taste it for yourself"_ She opened her mouth and took a hesitant bite,and was pleasantly surprised when it actually tasted good.

_"__Tony….it's great"_ Nikki said once she'd swallowed, he nodded and smiled as he polished off the rest of the slice and two more.

_"__Tony"_ Nikki wasn't really hungry anymore….at least not for pizza.

_"__yeah?"_ He looked up from his meal and stared into her lust filled eyes ,She pulled him towards her by his collar and sealed her lips over kiss only lasted a moment but, it did it's job.

_"__Are you ready for dessert?"_

He nodded and Nikki took that as her cue ,she slowly pulled her dress up and over her head. No matter how many times they'd had sex he would never get over how flawless her body taking a moment to appreciate her body he bent down and took one of her pert nipples into his mouth,his other hand slid between her thighs finding her throbbing clit. Nikki let out a pleasure filled groan when his fingers reached her drenched hands went straight to his pants trying desperately to get them opened and off. He only stopped long enough to get his clothes but, instead of just kissing her he lifted her up onto the stool and dropped to his knees between her spread thighs and practically dove into her pussy tongue first.

She held onto his head trying in vain to push his tongue deeper inside of her but, it was no use.

_"__Ssss st stoo sssstttooooppp tease teasing "_ He gave a light chuckle which sent a jolt of pleasure down her spine, he was hard and ready to blow but he couldn't get enough of her taste. She could feel her orgasm approaching and leaned her elbows back onto the counter allowing her the leverage she needed to grind her hips into his face. By the time she came back down from her first release she wasn't sure she was hydrated enough cum again. he kissed his way up her body and pressed his naked form against hers simply enjoying the contact.

"mmmm you gonna fuck me now or is cuddling all you wanna do baby?" He planted a soft kiss onto her shoulder before whispered in her ear.

_"__I need a condom"_

_"__No we don't I'm on birth control I lo-...I trust you"_

He looked up into her eyes silently asking her if she was sure about her decision, YES he was clean but, this was still a huge step for of answering she reached between them and gently grabbed his member giving it a couple of strokes before she lined it up with her entrance. Because of how close they were standing his cock slid right into her, she sighed in content her heart fluttered at how right it felt to be with him like this. Tony shuttered at the new sensation , and willed his orgasm off until he gave her another one he'd gotten his body under control he moving at an almost leisurely pace ,pulling all the way out and slowly thrusting back in.

Nikki was going to explode he felt amazing inside of her , the lack of a barrier between them allowed her to feel even more of him. She felt the head of his cock brush against her g-spot and let out a shriek of pleasure. Her legs came up and locked around his waist as her nails dug into his thrusts sped up and Nikki let out another moan and began grinding her hips against as hard as she tried to ignore it the pain in her back from the counter was distracting her from what should have been pure pleasure.

_"__,TTTony baby, please. wait...i i need"_ He stopped and looked at her with concern filled eyes.

_"__What's wrong?" _

_"__The counter is digging into my back"_

Without another word he lifted her off of the stool and carried her upstairs to his didn't think this man could turn her on any more than he had but being carried up the stairs by him did something to her insides, maybe it was because he hadn't bothered to pull out. He carefully slowly into bed being careful not to drop her ,once he got them settled in the center of the mattress he bent down and gave her a soul stealing before he could start moving again she stopped him and turned around positioning herself on all fours in front of him she reinserted his member inside of her dripping core.

_"__ .FUCK Nicole you feel so good."_

This new position made her already tight hole impossibly tighter and he couldn't control himself any longer.

_"__yes,yeS YES!" _

Nikki's hands gripped the headboard to help brace herself against his brutal pace ,trying with everything she had to match it. She could feel her juices dripping down her thighs already and knew her orgasm was going to hit hard. Tony was starting to see stars he knew he was getting close ,not wanting to leave her behind he began to rub her clit in time with his thrusts. He felt a rush of pride when her moans increased in volume and placed his free hand on her shoulder for leverage allowing himself to thrust threw her head back in pleasure as her orgasm washed over her,she'd never felt anything so intense in her life.A moment later she felt a rush of warmth inside of her and knew that Tony had came as was surprising how much the feel of him cumming inside of her without any barrier turned her on.

_"__Lay, on your back"_

Tony raised an eyebrow when he heard the unusual request,she usually preferred to spoon after they had sex but he wasn't going to carefully pulled himself from her body and did as she he was situated she climbed between his thighs giving him a quick peck on the lips. She ran her tongue down his chest and stopped at the base of his renewed erection. licking her lips when she tasted their combined juices on his manhood.

His hips seemed to arch on their own silently begging her to continue. She licked him from base to tip smiling in delight at the desperate look in his eyes .Deciding to put him out of his misery she wrapped her lips around the head, slowly teasing the slit with her tongue before taking him all the way in. The sounds coming from Tony's mouth were neither normal nor human,it made perfect sense that she had an amazing mouth to match her amazing body. He grabbed hold of the pillow and held it tightly afraid he would pull her hair out if he touched moaned at the taste of him as she sucked on his engorged shaft using one hand to grope his sack. It was odd how she'd never enjoyed giving John a blowjob yet here she was moaning like a whore her pussy was once again dripping wet. Unable to hold out any longer she slid her free hand lower sliding three fingers into her greedy cunt and began to move them at the same pace as her mouth. She could feel him start to twitch on her tongue and before she knew it he pulled her up his body and soon he was slamming into her pussy with all his power .

It wasn't long before they were both screaming in pleasure once again. Nikki collapsed on his chest they were both covered in sweat but neither cared.

_"__So,do you fuck everyone of your students or am I just lucky?"_ She said breaking the silence once she had caught her breath.

_"__Did you like it? I was thinking of making it part of my new incentive program with the ladies" _

_"__I hate you so much sometimes"_ he could hear the chuckle in her voice and smiled,truly glad that the looming dark cloud that seemed to have consumed her earlier had gone and promised himself that he would never give her any reason to feel like that again.


	17. The past never stays there

"_Aj Can you go check on the models? Lexi can you go call about the food? please" _

Both ladies Nodded and went off in two different directions. It was the night of Maryse's Launch party and true to their word Brie,Sasha, Cameron and even Alicia, Aksana and Bayley had been right beside her the entire time. Tony's restaurant was overbooked with reservations so they had to find somewhere else to have it.

Fortunately Stephanie and Hunter were willing to let her use the rooftop of their office building which would compliment the look they were going for perfectly. They enlisted Roman's cousin Jimmy to DJ and jimmy's wife Naomi even volunteered to help set up. Velvet had been over the moon when Nikki asked her to help and was quickly becoming a good friend

While the ladies were setting up Tony ,Roman, Daniel,Antonio and Seth were at his house packing up all of the hor dourves and the desserts for the evening.

"_How many people are coming to this thing again?" _Seth asked as he returned from taking a load to the car.

"_I have no Idea but remind me to never volunteer for anything ever again" _Tony quipped as he walked out to the car.

"_We can remind you all you want ...but that won't stop you from being pussy whipped." _

"_Says the guy who's had to hide on his front porch every day for the last month because of his wife's mood swings."_

A round of laughter erupted and Antonio gave him a playful glare before they continued and soon they had everything loaded up and headed off.

The party was in full swing and everyone seemed to be enjoying themselves. Tony along with some of the waiters and waitresses from Cristabels were walking around with serving trays making sure nobody missed out on was busy making sure the models looked perfect and were ready to hit the runway. Never ones to be left out of anything Brie and Sasha insisted on modeling as well so they were now standing on pedestals along with the other models as moving artwork.

Everything was going great until she spotted someone that she had NOT expected to see there. Her Ex-boyfriend John Cena and his fiancee Summer Rae she tried to move before they could notice but as usual luck was not on her side.

"_Nicole, fancy meeting you here,Did you finally dump those losers you used to hang out with I didn't think you hung out with people this classy" _

John's voice held the usual arrogance that she'd grown to loath ,he held Summer close and she knew he was just trying to hurt her by rubbing his fiancee and their baby in her face .Nikki bit her lip this was not the place to lose her cool this wasn't anything new he had never got along with her friends ,mainly because he was so stuck up and he wasn't worth getting fired over.

"_I'm here on behalf of the Helmsley ad agency Maryse personally asked me to take this account."_

"_So same ol lonely Nicole…..Kelly was telling me that you were Dating a five star chef...but i knew THAT couldn't be true" _

Nikki tried not to let what he was saying get to her , John had always been an expert at finding her insecurities .

"_Ho-"_ Nikki went to speak but was quickly cut off by a voice that she was incredibly happy to hear.

" _hors d'oeuvres_ _anyone?" _

Tony had seen John walk past him a few minutes prior and had spent the next few trying to find Nikki knowing that he was arrogant enough to try and hurt her and he would be damned if John destroyed the confidence that her friends and himself had helped her gain back.

"_Oh my God you're Anthony Davis … I'm Summer and this is my fiance John ,I'm a huge FAN of your cooking ,I tried to get tickets to your restaurant opening last month but it's all booked up for the next eight months. Nikki How did you get HIM to cater this is huge" _

"_Well I've actually known both Nicole and John since high school but, as of right now I am her very lucky Boyfriend" _

John nearly choked on the wine he was drinking he KNEW Anthony looked familiar he used to follow Nikki around like a lost puppy .

"_Summer do you mind going to get me a drink of water?" _

The oblivious blonde nodded before she headed off once she was out of earshot John turned back to the happy couple and smiled.

"_Man ,you are pathetic….you pine over her for twelve years , I bet she broke your virginity huh?"_

Tony chuckled at the irony of it , John had called him pathetic but he was the one still using highschool tactics and harassing the woman whom he was supposedly over, and using a completely innocent woman to make her jealous.

"_Actually I have an eight year old daughter and being in love isn't 'pathetic' as you so eloquently put it. . . . . but what IS pathetic is a grown ass man harassing his ex-girlfriend. the question is WHY john , WHY do you feel the incessant need to rub your life into her face ? Are you insecure john ? have you FINALLY realized that you let a wonderfull woman walk out of your life and deep down you know that you've lost the best thing that ever happened to you? well guess what John your stupidity is my gain." _

Nikki looked around stunned there were a few people looking in there direction but the majority was still going about their business .She was still trying to process Tony's words 'being in love isn't pathetic' did he just admit to loving her? John turned on his heels and stormed off hopefully for good , Nikki placed a chaste kiss on Tony's cheek and hurried him off on his way.

"_I saw what happened...You ok?"_ Nikki turned towards the voice and saw Bryan standing there with concern filled eyes and nodded. Seeing John didn't bother her as much as it used to and having Tony there certainly helped .

"_You sure? cause I can go talk to him if you want me to. " _

Nikki giggled at his offer, Bryan was several inches shorter than John and was undoubtedly the least threatening person she knew.

"_Positive Bryan , now let's just enjoy the rest of the party"_

Nikki walked off and began to mingle, most of the guests here were very influential people who no doubt would make amazing clients for The Triple H ad the earlier run in with John everything was going amazing the food was amazing the wine was perfect and Aj's idea to display the clothing was flawless. She was so busy that she didn't even see the two pairs of eyes watching her with pure distaste in their eyes.

"_What does he even see in her?" _

Across the room John's sister Kelly and his future wife Summer .

"_What did John See in her ? all I know is that he can do a LOT better , I mean look at that dress she looks ugh I can't even describe , it hurts to look at it." _

Summer grimaced as she watched Nikki interact with the party goers Her black Knee length high waisted pencil skirt paired with a matching tank and her favorite limited edition mix no.6 sarti platform dress was actually something she'd bought a long time ago but never got to wear but now seemed like the perfect time.

Their attention was drawn from Nikki when they saw Anthony walk by.

"_Seriously LOOK at him, he's tall handsome and those eyes ….why would he settle for that charity case when he can have sooooooo much better"_

Kelly was eyeing him like a bottle of water in the desert.

"_AND he can cook….oh my god this food is amazing, he is perfect. I'm telling you Kelly if I wasn't marrying your brother I would SO be all over that" _

"_Good thing for me then" _

without another word Kelly sauntered off in Anthony's Direction. Her barely there pink strapless dress clung to her every curve ,when she finally reached him he was discussing something with reached a perfectly manicured hand up and tapped him on the shoulder getting his attention.

"_Hel-low" _

Tony's voice held a slight bit of confusion until he realized that she was a cheerleader and he wasn't exactly a popular person so no she wouldn't recognise him.

"_Hi ,I'm Kelly and I just had to come over here and personally compliment you on the amazing food" _

Anthony knew exactly what she was doing, Kelly was a pampered spoiled little brat just like her brother and would bet dollars to dimes that she knew he was dating 'd seen her talking to winter….he didn't remember her name but he knew it was a season.

"_Thank you Kelsey" _

"_It's KELLY"_

"_Sorry"_

"_that's ok ...so what are you doing after this?" _She leaned forward to give him a better view of her cleavage.

"_I was planning on taking a very special lady home with me."_

Kelly smiled seductively .

"_Really ,and just WHO would that be?"_

"_Nikki….you remember her right? she used to date your brother and now she's dating someone worthy of her she's also the woman who planned this whole fact the food was her idea ,good choices don't you think?" _

It took everything in him to keep from laughing at the look on her face. How dare she think that he would break Nikki's heart like that? He loved her entirely too much to do that, she also loved Tessa and that made him love her even more.

"_Oh please, you CAN'T be serious right now."_

"_I'm incredibly serious right now, so if you have nothing else to say I have to get back to work" _

He turned to leave and nearly ran over John, he excused himself and went to side _step him but John stopped him._

"_I overheard you talking to my little sister" _

"_And?"_

"_And I don't like what I heard" It was amusing watching John try to be intimidating._

"_That sounds like a personal problem so...goodbye"_ Tony smiled and walked over towards another group of guests and offered them some of the macaroons on his plate.

"_ugh….well THAT was fun" _

NIkki said as she unlocked the door and held it door open as Anthony walked through the door with a sleeping Tessa in his arms .It was ten PM and they'd just got done cleaning up from that hell that was Maryse's party. NOt to be confused the party itself was great but three of the guests (Kelly, Summer and John) were a constant pain in their asses. If Kelly wasn't flirting with him John was making snide little comments to Mike who to his credit had defended them especially when John tried to say it was boring and the food sucked.

"_Well at least it's over" _He carefully carried the sleeping child upstairs to her room and put her to bed. Nikki locked the front door and followed him upstairs and met him just as he was coming out of tessa's room.

"_C'mon baby , let's get you to bed" _She grabbed his hand and pulled him down the hall and into his room.

"_I like where this is going" _

He watched closely as she began stripping out of her skirt and had spent the day with his sister Layla and her two kids at an indoor water park so he knew she was thoroughly tired Tessa out.

"_Get your mind out of the gutter"_

"_Fine...but don't be grinding your ass all over me in your sleep"_

He removed his jacket and walked into to the closet to hang it along with his slacks and came out a few moments later in a pair of pajama pants.

"_you're disgusting" _

Nikki crawled into bed and made herself comfortable and Tony joined her pulling her close and soon the couple had fallen asleep in each other's arms.


	18. Authors Note III

Sorry for the delay in update Team Bella has been incredibly fussy lately. Not to mention finding out about Roddy Piper passing away has really put e in a somber mood and I haven't been able to write a halfway decent chapter .you all deserve the absolute best for putting up with my lack of direction. Hopefully I'll have something ready by the end of the week.


	19. Sexual Healing

**Hello all , thank you for your patients while I figured out where the hell I was going with this story so here we are at long last A NEW CHAPTER! **

Nikki felt horrible her her head was killing her ,her throat was on fire and she couldn't even eat anything without throwing it back worse part was that Stephanie had taken one look at her and sent her home and told her not to come back until she felt better…..like SHE'D never worked sick before . Before Nikki left she had made sure to tell Alexa and AJ to keep her meeting with Titus and Darren they owned Prime time a premium Vodka , they'd loved the work she'd done for Maryse four months prior and Darren Young had personally sought her out to do the advertising on their new 'whipped cream' flavored vodka. She trusted both Alexa and AJ to present the notes and charts that they'd all worked their asses off for the last six weeks perfecting .

The first thing Nikki did when she got home was call her mother and whine about how 'icky' she felt and she'd rushed right hadn't seen Tony all day because as usual he spent his days at the restaurant ,Eve would pick up Tessa from school at two and watch her until either she got off at six or on the off chance Tony came home early he'd get her. Her mother was currently downstairs standing vigilant in case she needed anything.

"_NNNNNIIIIKKKKIIIIIIII!"  
_"_Tessa shhhhh" _Speaking of her favorite father daughter duo she could hear Tessa running up the stairs yelling and Tony telling her to be quieter. A moment later she came bursting into the room at full speed thankfully tony was faster as he caught her right before she landed on the bed and set her down gently on the bed next to Nikki.

"_Are you OK Nikki?" _ Since her mother had ruled her unable to speak Nikki just smiled and nodded.

"_Baby ,why don't you go downstairs with Miss Colace and help her clean up" _

"_Yes sir" _

She jumped off the bed and ran back out of the room. He turned back towards Nikki who looked positively any more thought he toed off his shoes and joined her in the spacious bed.

"_Come on cuddle up." _

She scooted over until she was laying on top of him and he wrapped his arms around her waist.

"_Daddy" _a few moments later they heard Tessa return , (thankfully quieter)

"_yes sweetie"_

"_can I go help miss Colace with her garden?"_

"_As long as you behave"_

She nodded eagerly before she once again exited the room , five minutes later they heard a car start up and pull off. he heard his phone 'ding' signaling an incoming text he cuckled when he saw it was from Nikki.

'_just me and you now.'_

"_yeah, My little girl just doesn't wanna hang with her daddy anymore"_

He spoke out loud rather than to text back. That was the understatement of the century , once Tessa had gotten REALLY comfortable around Nikki's family she'd completely left his side. It warmed his heart that Nikki was so willing to accept his daughter into her life.

_*ding*_

'_F.Y.I I'm not wearing anything under my night gown'_

"_why do I need to know that?" _

He could feel his cock jump knowing that the woman sprawled across his body was practically naked….even if she did reek of Vicks it did nothing to deter his libio.

_*ding*_

'_wanna play naughty doctor?;)'_

"_how the fuck?...no"_

_*ding*_

'_the dayquil just kicked in 3'_

"_we are not having sex"_

With the little strength the medicine gave her she worked her hips against his. She could feel him harden under her and wiggled out of her gown before depositing it onto the floor.

" _why can't you be a normal sick person and just sleep . But NNNOOOOO you want dick." _

she reached over and grabbed her phone he guessed to send another text nearly dreading what it was going to say.

_*ding*_

"_I think i need my temperature taken Doc'_

"_I'm not even going to dignify that with a response"_

_*Ding*_

'_I need my flu shot'_

Tony burst out laughing when he read that, only His Nikki would say something like that. By the time he'd got his laughter under control Nikki had managed to get his pants unbuttoned and had pulled his cock out.

"_Oh no you don't"_

He carefully rolled her over onto her back placing most of his weight onto his elbows, he'd never been so conflicted in his life. His morals were telling him not to, she was sick after all and what kind of self respecting person took advantage of the there was his painful erection (and Nikki) telling him to do it and as an added bonus Nikki was now once again rubbing herself against it. He could feel her moist lower lips gliding along his erection her tiny mules of pleasure were breaking his resolve. He could see both the lust and fatigue in her brown eyes and knew he wouldn't be able to hold out for long ….Nicole Garcia-Colace had always been his weakness. Since the day she'd came back into his life he had given her complete control of his heart and she'd fiercely protected it.

Unable to resist any longer he reached between them and positioned himself at her entrance and slowly entered her. Nikki immediately dug her nails into his back, luckily he was still wearing a shirt or else she would have clawed his back off. He kept his thrusts slow and deep she was sick after all he didn't want to hurt her even more. Nikki bit her lip it was a great idea at the time but she'd completely forgotten about her strep throat. Tony knew how to please her whether it was slow love making or a hot fuck ,he ALWAYS delivered and she always ended up screaming. Now was no different between her nails and her teeth she was practically ripping his shirt off of his body.

Tony increased the force of his thrusts but kept a slow pace every so often he would hear a faint squeak from her. He would never get used to the feel of being inside of her , the absence of a barrier made the sensation all the clamped her muscles around him and hope he caught the hint and moved faster. She sighed in relief when he began moving faster.

"FUCK YES!" Came the broken scratchy scream from Nikki's throat unable to keep quiet any longer and completely forgetting about her sore bent her legs back as far as she could in her current state trying desperately to get him deeper inside of her.

"Bab...baby ...you...you gotta be quiet ...your throat"

"Then fuck me….deeaahhhhh, hard,more" Her voice sounded terrible but at least she wasn't shouting he hooked his arms underneath her knees and held them back shivering in pleasure when he felt his cock slide deeper inside of her. It only took a few more thrusts to finish her off and he followed her right over the of pulling out he rolled so she was once again on top of him and rubbed her back as she dozed off.

"_why do I need to go see a doctor? you were doing a great job taking care of me"_

"_Baby you've been sick for two weeks, we're all worried about you...and sex does not help"_

Tony pulled into the parking space of Nikki's doctor's office and got out. He'd called four times and each time she'd canceled the appointment but this time he didn't tell her beforehand….he just took her throat had gotten better and her headache was gone but her vomiting had gotten worse. She walked ahead of him towards the receptionist's desk to check in and unfortunately didn't let the conversation drop.

"_It helped me get off…..I can't help that I've been REALLY horny lately and you're really good at fucking ,besides your participation is completely voluntary." _

Tony was incredibly thankful that his skin was a lot darker than Nikki's because he could feel the heat in his cheeks. Only Nikki would openly talk about sex in a crowded waiting room and wasn't quiet about it either. Thanks to her he was now getting 'looks' from the other women in the room.

"_Nikki...can you not tell everyone that it's embarrassing "_

"_How is -" _

"_Nicole Garcia-Colace"_

Thankfully before the conversation could get anymore out of hand the Nurse came out and called her to the back

"_Thank GOD , Let's go"_

He carefully led her to the examining room and lifted her to sit on the exam was a bit uneasy the only other time he'd ever went to the doctor with a woman was when Christa was pregnant. He sat quietly in the corner as the nurse took Nikki's blood pressure before leaving to get the doctor.

"_This is pointless it's probably just food poisoning"_

"_Nikki speaking as both a Chef AND the person who's been cooking ALL of your meals that's not exactly comforting"_

"_Well we all can't be as good a cook as me now can we"_

"_I taught YOU how to cook"_

"_awwww is someone a wittle jeawous that their girlfriend can cook better than him" _

Nikki laughed at the sour look on his face and smiled it was always so easy to ruffle his feathers.

"_Is this how you show your love for me Nicole?"_

"_awwww, Tony baby you know I love you" _she stretched her leg out and gave him a light yet affectionate door opened before he could say anything else and in walked Dr. Stratus.

"_Hello Nicole and….ohh la la is this the Tony that I've been hearing about?"_

"_Yup" _

Nikki answered her voice full of pride he was attractive , hard working, devoted, an amazing father and affectionate what more could a woman want in a man.

"_Well it's nice to finally meet you Tony I'm Dr. Stratus you can call me Trish"_

"_Nice to meet you too"_

"_Ok now back to you Nikki, so you're still vomiting"_

"_Yes ,well. . .not as much just when I eat certain things or when a bad smell hits me and I've been really tired and REALLY horny lately" _

"_You do know that everything you've just told me are common signs of pregnancy, When was your last period?"_

Nikki was thrilled.

_"I'm PREGNANT!?"_She couldn't keep the excitement out of her voice .

_"we won't know for sure until you take the test but, it's definitely a possibility "_

_" how long will it take?"_Nikki asked , she was incredibly eager to know if she was finally going to be a mother .

_"about ten minutes, I just need a urine sample" _

then handed Nikki a cup from out of the cabinets and showed her to the restroom.

"_So Tony Nikki tells me that you have a Daughter" _He smiled as he thought about Tessa

"_Yeah, her name's Tessa she's eight and a HUGE diva she loves Nikki so much" _Trish gave him a knowing look.

"_Looks like she's not the only one"_

"_Not by a long shot" _

A moment later Nikki came back out of the bathroom with sample in hand and eagerly handed it over to the doctor who immediately exited the room to run the test.

"_so now we wait" _Tony nodded and sat down in one of the available chairs and pulled out his phone.

"_What the hell is your problem?" _

Nikki questioned they'd had this talk before and he was all for it.

"_I'm fine "_

"_Then why are you so...ugh...all of the sudden?"_

"_Nikki believe me when I say I want this just as much as you,I just don't wanna get my hopes up in case you aren't so I'm going to wait until we know for sure before I go do back flips down the street screaming " _

Nikki felt a rush of relief when he said that, he was an amazing guy and had for the most part erased her insecurities but every now and again they still reared their ugly head and she hated it.

"_Come here" _

Tony broke her from her thoughts and she walked over towards him. When she was in reach he wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her to stand between his legs and rested his head against her belly.

"_I hope we get to do this more often."_

Nikki reached up and massaged his scalp, she didn't think it was possible to want something as much as she wanted to be pregnant right now. The couple enjoyed the silence, both were lost in their own thoughts and hoping the same door opened and closed without alerting either person.

"_I don't want to interrupt this touching moment but, I have the results of your pregnancy test Nicole"_

She turned and sat in Tony's lap and Trish handed her the paper that would either grant her wish or crush her dreams. Taking a deep breath she studied the paper and froze not believing her eyes underneath her name in big bold letters read '_**PREGNANT'**_ Nikki's face hurt with how wide she was smiling she turned and looked at Tony who may have had a bigger smile on his face than she did.

"_so do you guys wanna see your baby?"_

"_Yes" _came the unanimous response from both of the happy parents.


	20. Double your fun

Nikki spent the entire ride home staring at the picture in her hand and smiling. Still not believing that in six and a half short months she was going to be a mother. Tony on the other hand had more than just being a dad again on his mind...he was more focused on their living arrangements . Did Nikki want to move in with him? Did she want him to move in with her ?Or did she want an entirely new home for them to build their family in?

Nikki looked over at Tony and the smile left her face , once again he looked more worried than excited .

"_Baby, you're thinking again….talk to me" _

"_Dad stuff"_ Nikki giggled when she heard that but, that was her Tony always worrying about the bigger picture while she handled the rest.

"_What's dad stuff?"_

"_living arrangements , I gotta cut back on work and stopping Tessa from bouncing off the walls when she hears the good news." _

"_Yeah, she's been wanting this for a while ,Brie and the girls are going to FLIP when they hear this."_

Tony pulled into his driveway twenty minutes later and killed the engine.

"_HI DADDY!"_

He looked next door and Spotted Tessa sitting on the porch with Brie who looked oddly to keep her amazing news from her sister Nikki rushed over to join them. Before either woman could say anything Brian came bursting out of the house firing questions at her

"_How'd it go?, what did the Doctor say? ,It's Nothing bad is it?" _

"_calm down DAD….Everything's fine, we actually got amazing news"_

Tessa ran over to greet her father as he walked up the stairs ,wrapping her arms around his waist.

"_I missed you daddy"_

"_I missed you too baby"_

"_I'm two and a half months pregnant" _

Nikki finally blurted out , the older twin was never good with keeping good news to herself. Brie screamed and jumped up pulling Nikki into a hug.

"_Oh my god Congratulations Nikki, this is gonna be so great , we can have a double baby shower" _

Nikki's eyes widened and she pulled back and held Brie at arm's length .

"_Brie….what… are you ...Pregnant?"_

Brie nodded happily, and they hugged again.

"_way to go Bryan"_

"_You too man"_

"_Daddy , am I really going to be a big sister?"_

"_Yup. you, me and Nikki got a lot of preparing to do before the baby gets here" _

"_YYYAAAAYYYY!" _

She released her hold on Tony and ran over to join the twins in their celebration.

"_You wanna go inside where it's quieter?"_

Brian questioned , Nikki, Brie and Tessa had made themselves comfortable on the porch and were all talking at once making it nearly impossible to hear anything else. Tony nodded and Brian led him into the house and downstairs to the 'Man cave' where they would be safe, knowing that soon Sasha and of course Cameron would be there.

"_You think we should warn the guys?"_

Anthony questioned looking over at Brian who was already typing away on his phone.

"_Already on it" _The shorter man responded as he hit 'send' on his mass text message

"_What'd you say"_

" '_Don't mind the screaming no one's dying' you know short and sweet" _

"_Sounds about right" _

Brian turned on the TV and soon the duo were engrossed in the flashback game on sports center.

****Back Upstairs****

"_We have to tell the girls….wait….we gotta tell mommie" _

"_Sasha is going to FLIP when she hears this" _

Both Brie and Nikki pulled out their phones and began calling their mom and friends who promptly said they were on their way once the promise of 'huge news' was made.

They sat patiently and waited , they soon saw Roman's black Escalade pull up .

Despite the tinted windows it was easy to see Sasha's excitement through the passenger window. As they were getting out another suv pulled up right behind them and they were soon followed by Cameron and Antonio who was also carrying their three month old daughter Amiyah.

"_OK I'm here ,what did you need to tell me that couldn't be said over the phone?"_

Sasha had barely set foot on the porch before the words left her lips.

"_I'm hurt that you say such things ,maybe we just wanted to see our friends."_

Brie spoke with mock hurt in her voice while Nikki and Tessa sat beside her pretending to cry.

"_ha...ha enough with the comedy routine what's the big news?"_

"_I don't mean to interrupt and not that we don't love listening to you lovely ladies talk ...but-"_

"_basement"_

Brie cut Antonio off before he could finish and, without further interruption focused her attention back on Sasha and Cameron who had taken a seat and made themselves comfortable ,Antonio walked over and placed the infant that was still seated in the car seat in front of Cameron before he followed behind Roman as he made his retreat into Bryan's man cave.

"_is SOMEONE going to say something?"_

Sasha's patients were wearing THIN and someone needed to speak NOW before she got pissed.

"_we're just waiting for ONE more person-"_

Brie paused as their mother's red nissan truck pulled up into the driveway.

"_Ok she's here now what is it"_

"_Can she get to the porch first Cammie?" _

"_OK I'm here what did Bryan or Anthony do now?_

A round of hello's greeted Ivory as she made herself comfortable and Tessa quickly moved from where she sat between the twins and greeted her with a hug before climbing into her lap.

"_It's funny you should say that mommy because it's not what Bryan OR Tony did…."_

Nikki started

"_It's what Bryan AND Tony did"_

Brie finished the cryptic message before she and Nikki broke out into a grin. They shared a look before they spoke.

"_WE'RE PREGNANT!"_

The screams they were expecting never came instead all they got were wide eyes and dropped jaws.

******Back downstairs*******

" _do you think they're ok up there?…...I don't hear Cameron"_

Tony and Bryan had already told Antonio and Roman the good news and they were all sitting and enjoying beers. They'd heard the girls give the good news a few minutes ago but it was followed by complete had thought for sure that Cameron would be the loudest one.

"_I think I hear Josie barking…. maybe they're screaming so loud that only dogs can hear it"_

Bryan responded

"_They're probably in shock...I mean Brie getting pregnant yeah, you two have been trying for like a year but Nikki ...no offense"_

Roman finally spoke , he was genuinely happy for all of his friends….even if this would more than likely push Sasha's maternal clock into overdrive. Hopefully she could wait until after they got married.

"_None taken I felt kinda light headed my damn self when suggested the pregnancy test._

a moment later they heard the loudest sound that none of them were quite sure had even came out of a human causing them all to jump and soo the sound of breaking glass followed.

"_Cameron" _

All four men spoke at once, as the moved to go get something to clean up the mess they had made.

******Upstairs*****

"_EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!"_

The ladies stared in awe as Amiyah continued to sleep while her mother screamed. Once the news of the 'double pregnancy' sank in Cameron let out a sound that no human should be able to make.

"_There is a baby trying to sleep right in front of you….lower your voice"_

"_Sorry mama Colace,but…. I can't help it my babies are pregnant"_

"_Speaking of which…"_

Unable to keep the smile from her face Sasha trailed off looking over at Tessa who looked ready to explode from all of the excitement.

"_Someone's gonna be a big sister" _

She continued in a sing song voice, Tessa nodded shyly as the smile on her face continued to grow. A round of 'awwws' followed as they began to talk excitedly about all of the planning and preparing that had to be done. Before they knew it the sun had set, and surprisingly Miyah had only woken up once and that was to eat. The Cesaro family were the first to leave because Antonio had to work in the morning. Soon Sasha and Roman made their exit as well Tessa had fallen asleep and Tony had taken her next door and put her to bed leaving the sisters and their mother to talk.

"_I can see you and Tessa are super excited but what about Tony? he seems … 'Eh' about the whole thing?"_

"_Relax mom, he's just as excited as we are "_

"_He has a funny way of showing it"_

"_He has a daughter to take care of as well as a girlfriend who loves attention so he's very focused on running his four restaurants so that he can spoil his girls."_

"_leave it to you to find a man who loves to spoil you Nicole"_

Brie joked but she was incredibly grateful that Tony loved her sister so much and although she knew this baby wouldn't replace the one Nikki lost it was nice to see that she was finally able to start the family she'd always wanted.

"_Tony, what are you doing? and why is she out of bed?"_

Nikki caught some movement out of the corner of her eye and was greeted by the sight of Tony standing on his porch with a now very wide awake Tessa in his arms.

" _She had another nightmare and demanded to see you"_

Nikki's eyes softened, she'd heard the story about how Tessa's mother had passed and it saddened her but,the nightmares that she had from time to time broke her heart. Someone her age shouldn't have to worry about things like death.

"_give me five minutes ok."_

He nodded before walking back into the house and Nikki said her goodbyes to her mother and sister before making her way back over to Tony's house to help put Tessa back to bed.


End file.
